10 years after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the United States finds itself having just wrapped up one war (Iraq) but still mired in a second (Afghanistan). While the politics of the Middle East has profoundly shaped democracy in the United States throughout this time, movements and events afoot within the Middle East – known as the “Arab Spring” – have erupted on the world stage and forced us to reconsider democracy there as well.
As we gear up for the 2012 presidential election, these two courses will offer students a look at democracy “at home and abroad.” Road to the White House will walk students through the presidential election as President Obama asks the American people to give him a second term. The Arab Spring will focus on the changes in the Middle East over the last year. Students taking these two courses in conjunction should be able to make critical connections between “democracy” in America and the yearning for it in the Middle East.
These courses count towards the Politics Certificate Program so a student could make progress towards the 5 course requirement to earn a Politics certificate approved by New York State.Road to the White House, POL296N, CRN: 504153 credits
July 16- August 9
Meets Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 1:25—4:35 p.m. in conjunction with The Arab Spring
This class will focus on the presidential selection process. We will take an in-depth look at what candidates have to do in order to capture the party nomination, and the role that political parties play in linking voters to the only nationally elected office in the American system of government. We will also examine other important aspects of the process, including the role of the media and interest groups, and the demands of campaign financing. When this semester concludes, you should be able to make informed judgments about the impact of the presidential selection process on the democratic character of the American political system.
Instructor: Christopher Malone. Ph.D. —Christopher Malone is Associate Professor and Chair of the Political Science Department at Pace University. He is a nationally recognized teacher of civic engagement and public values. In January 2004 he was identified by the WashingtonPostas one of the nation's most innovative professors. From 2004-2010, Dr. Malone co-taught a course on American Politics and Public Policy with C-SPAN’s Executive Producer SteveScullythat aired every Friday afternoon on the C-SPAN networks. He is the author of BetweenFreedomandBondage: RaceandVotingRightsintheAntebellumNorth.(Routledge Press, 2008). He is a contributing author to the LawandPoliticsBookReviewand regularly analyzes politics for Good Morning Hudson Valley, USA Today, The New York Times and WINS 1010 in New York City. Malone has also been quoted in more than a hundred of news articles on presidential politics and has appeared on local New York City television news shows analyzing presidential politics.The Arab Spring, POL297S, 3 credits, CRN: 50423
July 16- August 9
Meets Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 9:05 a.m--12:15 p.m. in conjunction with Road to the White House
In the Spring of 2011, a chain-reaction of popular upheavals shook the countries of North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, causing authoritarian leaders in Tunisia and Egypt to step down. Other countries throughout the region experienced massive protests as well, producing diverse outcomes, ranging from the NATO intervention in Libya, to timid reforms in Morocco and Saudi Arabia. This course will explore the cultural, geopolitical, and socioeconomic forces that set the stage for the so-called Arab Spring, in the light of both recent history as well as ongoing events in this world-changing regional drama.
Instructor: Jose Laguarta-Ramirez – Jose Laguarta-Ramirez is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Pace University. Born in Puerto Rico, Laguarta Ramirez did his undergraduate at Columbia University and then returned to Puerto Rico to complete his law degree. He is currently completing his doctorate in International Relations at the CUNY Graduate Center. Laguarta-Ramirez is an expert in Latin American and Middle Eastern politics. His academic work focuses on democratic reforms and revolutions in the developing world.