In the wake of the #BlackLivesMatter movement and the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing, it is clear that U.S. policing is in a moment of transition. This course is an in-depth sociological analysis of the origins, composition, and effects of policing in contemporary U.S. society. Throughout the course, we focus on using a social science lens to understand what policing is and how it influences social life. We will pay particular attention to the ways in which race and class inequalities are reflected in and reshaped by policing practices. The course material is divided into four units. In the first, we cover the history of formal policing in the U.S. and the turn toward the war on drugs. We then consider an ethnography of policing in Los Angeles'
"skid row" in the 2000s. The third section explores broader patterns of surveillance and control, focusing in particular on policing gender, class, schools, and terror. Our final section considers present-day efforts to reform the police (or "police the police"). Throughout the course, we draw on contemporary media stories, podcast, documentaries, and guest visitors to connect scholarship with the world around us.