Scribner Seminar Program
Course Description

Freedom Dreams: and the Black Radical Imagination

Instructor(s): Jenni Mueller

High-profile incidents of racist violence and the related mass protests of recent years continue to chip away at the illusion of a “post-racial” America. Today, a new generation of activists have mobilized around a broad-based Movement for Black Lives, extending a centuries-old tradition of Black resistance. This course examines historical struggles for liberation using the lens of Black radical imagination and practice of intergroup dialogue. How do individuals and groups cultivate and nurture freedom dreams in the context of all-encompassing systems of oppression? What methods have Black freedom dreamers used to understand, navigate, and challenge white supremacy and domination, inside and outside the academy? How might we apply these lessons to the challenges we face in envisioning, not to mention working toward more socially just worlds and liberated selves? Together, we will examine the work of writers, artists, historians, social scientists, filmmakers, legal analysts, philosophers, and grassroots activists—and use structured in-class dialogues, interactive activities, and self-reflective written assignments—to consider how ordinary people bring about extraordinary transformations.