Course Info

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Course Info for AMST - 481 - 01, Fall 2025
Class number: 3208 Title: Black Marriage in US Slavery Department: American Studies
Career: Undergraduate Component: Seminar Session: Regular
Instructor's Permission Required: No Grading Basis: Regular Units: 1.00
Enrollment limited to 15 Current enrollment: 10 Available seats: 5
Start date: Tuesday, September 2, 2025 End date: Wednesday, December 17, 2025 Mode of Instruction: In Person
Schedule: TR: 10:50AM-12:05PM, HHN - 105 Instructor(s): Miller, Channon
Prerequisite(s): None
Distribution Requirement: Meets Humanities Requirement
Course Description:
While the institution of slavery in the United States declared Black people chattel, Black people declared themselves human - and worthy of love, community, intimacy, relationships - and marriage. Accorded to the law, marriage between white women and white men was sacred and protected. For the enslaved, these unions were outlawed. This course unearths a history of how enslaved Black people defined, practiced, and sustained marital bonds under a controlling regime.