SSJ40040 Travellers, Rights & Nomadism

Academic Year 2017/2018

Irish Travellers are a small ethnic minority. Despite their long history of nomadism and their unique cultural traditions, there has been limited recognition of their uniqueness in political and social terms. They have been identified in numerous studies as the ethnic group that experiences the most intense discrimination in Ireland. Using a critical theoretical and transformative lens, the aim of this course is: a) to analyse the uniqueness of Travellers’ ethnicity and culture; b) to examine the injustices and discriminations that they experience across different social institutions, and c) to explore how their rights could be enhanced and protected in areas such as education, housing, health care, employment and the legal system. The course will also examine why nomadic people, including Roma and Travellers, are subjected to prolonged intense racism across Europe in the context of contemporary theoretical debates on racism and nomadism. The course has been designed in collaboration with a number of Traveller organisations (including Roma people). The focus is not only on analysing injustices but on researching transformatively how best to address injustices experienced by nomadic peoples.

We encourage you to search for other Social Justice (SSJ) modules which include options relating to Equality Studies and Women's Studies. Graduates who have completed at least 15 credits of undergraduate electives by choosing SSJ modules will have this noted on their UCD transcripts as the completion of Structured Electives in Social Justice.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of the course the students should have developed;
1. A theoretically-informed advanced understanding of Travellers as an ethnic minority
2. A deep scholarly understanding of Nomadism and its social justice implications in advanced capitalist societies
3. An in-depth knowledge of the complex discriminations and injustices experienced by Travellers and Roma in Ireland in particular, but also in Europe
4. An advanced scholarly framework as to how to work transformatively to overcome the injustices experienced by Travellers and Roma across major social and political institutions
5. The skills to write a research-based paper that is both analytically and transformatively sophisticated

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

24

Specified Learning Activities

40

Autonomous Student Learning

140

Total

204

 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.



 
Description % of Final Grade Timing
Essay: Final Essay

60

Coursework (End of Trimester)
Assignment: Presentations based on readings

20

Varies over the Trimester
Attendance: Attendance and Participation in classes

20

Throughout the Trimester

Compensation

This module is not passable by compensation

Resit Opportunities

In-semester assessment

Remediation

If you fail this module you may repeat, resit or substitute where permissible

Name Role
Dr Margaret Crean Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Miss Sindy Joyce Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Ms Hannagh McGinley Lecturer / Co-Lecturer