Forum

The Roots and Implications of the Trump Election

This forum includes critical reflections on the rise of Trump in the political field during the 2016 election in the US and World, including implications for race, class, immigration, gender, politics, culture, media, the economy, and more.

Returning to Class? – Eribon and ‘Identity Politics’ in the Time of Trump

In the wake of the 2016 translation of sociologist Didier Eribon’s penetrating memoir, Returning to Reims into German, Ben Trott calls for a critical re-engagement with the intersections of sexuality, class, nation, and resistance.

Teaching in a Trump Country: The Political Potential of Introductory Sociology

Shelly Steward discusses the experience and challenges of teaching sociology at a community college in a conservative, rural area during the 2016 election cycle. She concludes that teaching introductory sociology can provide common tools for students to use that can bridge ideological divides, suggesting a need for quality sociology educators across educational institutions.

Unsettling “Indian American Hindus” and Model Minority Projects in Trump-Era “America”

South Asians have found themselves lodged between competing stereotypes: the docile and disciplinable “achiever” and the ungovernable “terrorist.” Model minority myths inform “Indian American Hindus” of their proximity to “whiteness” while reinforcing a color line that is impossible and dangerous to cross.

Articulating Trumpism, or, Thanks, Obama!

The liberal strategy of simply exposing Trump’s lies, pointing to his preposterously unscripted oratory, and hoping to convey some sort of “truth” as antidote to his base misses the point. Trump’s brand of populism has sutured “the people” to the interests of big capital.