Here’s an opportunity to find your own “growing edge” on matters of race. Join us this summer to increase our own metacognition around race – that is, how do we perceive and do we know how we perceive others? Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime, a picaresque and hilarious beach-read but insightful coming-of-age memoir, uses a South African lens to perceive how “race” operates. In Seeing Race, Guterl, who may make a guest appearance, explores media and popular culture with a focus on our “sight lines,” his metaphor for seeing race differences in our bodies.

Format: Before class begins, participants are asked to read Born a Crime and to sign up to lead discussion of one of the related topics on the syllabus. Short readings from Guterl’s book will support each topic. Class members are encouraged to provide discussion questions that stimulate discussion and dialog.

Resources/Expenses: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah and Seeing Race in Modern America by Matthew P. Guterl are available at public libraries, the Brown Book Store, and on Amazon.com for as low as $7.00 total used in paperback. Internet and email access are strongly recommended.