Histoire de l’Amérique du Nord / North American History

Olivier Maheo

Contact : maheo.prof@gmail.com  

The main objective of the class is to help students be able to place – and critically analyze – current political discussions and events within their historical context. From the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement to that of the “alt-right” in the United States, and extending to recent debates over residential schools and reparations in Canada, the MAGA movement and Trump’s uses of history, navigating North American politics and societies in the 21^st century demands strong historical knowledge. 

Students attending this class will explore a variety of themes tackling key issues in North American political and social history, including the transformation of political parties and cultures, the reconfigurations of state power, and the construction and persistence of racial, socio-economic and gender inequalities.

Classes will be based on lectures in which students will be encouraged to participate by commenting on archival texts and videos. Classes will end with student presentations on the required readings. Lectures will be conducted in French or English. Student presentations and class discussions can be conducted in either French or English. 

1.     Student presentations (in class – French or English – 50%)

Each week, a couple of students will be in charge of presenting and analyzing a document (cf. list below) to the rest of the class. Presentations should focus on the documents’ main ideas, stakes and context (see detailed methodology below). To that end, students need to make a careful reading and analysis of the document but also to conduct further research. Presentations – two per week, 15 minutes each – should have a thesis statement and a clear outline. Presentations should end with three questions to the rest of the class to start a collective discussion. 

All students need to come to class having carefully read the documents. Students who are not presenting are expected to engage with the presenters at the end of their presentation by weighing in on the analysis, engaging in the discussion and asking further questions.

2.     Final exam (in class – French or English – 50%)

The final exam will take the form of a general essay question which students will answer using what they have learned in class throughout the semester, including the documents, articles and chapters studied during the presentations. Students will be expected to make explicit, precise references to the documents. 

Week 1 (Sept. 15). Introduction to the U.S. and Canada constitutional systems and 19^th-century history:

American Revolution, British North American colonies. Constitutions, Bill or Rights, Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Federalism.

•       The British North America Act received Royal Assent on 29th March 1867 and went into effect 1st July 1867

•        Trump Says ‘I Don’t Know’ When Asked About Due Process and Upholding Constitution, Jonathan Swan, White House reporter, New York Times.

•       One Sentence in the Constitution Is Causing America Huge Problems, David French, New York Times  Aug. 21, 2025

Week 2 (Sept. 22). Native nations, US & Canada

•       Julia Jacobs, Once a Roadside Attraction, a Native Burial Site Nears Repatriation, Reporting from Springfield, Ill. Once a Roadside Attraction, a Native Burial Site Nears Repatriation, March 25, 2024

•       Justin Trudeau, Statement of Apology on Behalf of the Government of Canada to Former Students of the Newfoundland and Labrador Residential Schools, November 24, 2017

Week 3 (Sept. 29). Two nations of (im)migrants? 

•       Cesar Chavez, “We Shall Overcome,” 1965. 

•       Dinesh D’Souza, The End of Racism. Principles for a Multiracial Society, Free Press, 1995. (excerpts)

Week 4 (Oct. 6). Federalism and the Quebec question

•       Jean Lesage, Premier Ministre du Québec, discours lors de la Semaine de l’Éducation à Montréal, 4 mars 1961.

•       Jacques Parizeau, discours après la victoire du Parti québécois aux élections provinciales, 14 septembre 1994.

Week 5 (Oct. 13) Perspectives on the State: from welfare state to carceral state #1

•       Franklin D. Roosevelt, Acceptance Speech for the Renomination for the Presidency, June 27, 1936.

•       Lyndon B. Johnson, “The Great Society,” May 22, 1964.

Week 6 (Oct. 20) No class Toussaint break

Week 7 (Nov. 3).  Perspectives on the State: from welfare state to carceral state #2

•       Richard Nixon, Acceptance Speech at the Republican Convention, August 8, 1968.  

•       Heather Ann Thompson, “Why Mass Incarceration Matters: Rethinking Crisis, Decline, and Transformation in Postwar American History,” Journal of American History, 2010 (2 students).

 Week 8 (Nov. 10). Social and political history of the Black liberation movement (Slavery / civil right /racism and its transformations #1

•       Martin Luther King, “The Other America,” March 14, 1968.

•       Jeanne Theoharis, “Hidden in Plain Sight: The Civil Rights Movement outside the South,” chapter in M. Lassiter and J. Crespino (eds.), The Myth of Southern Exceptionalism, Oxford University Press, 2009. (2 students).

Week 9 (Nov. 17). Social and political history of the Black liberation movement #2

•       Malcolm X, “Message to the grassroots,” 1963. 

•       Ta-Nehisi Coates, Between the World and Me, Spiegel & Grau, 2015 (p. 11-28)

Week 10 (Nov. 24). Gender 

•       Audre Lorde, “The Uses of anger. Women respond to racism,” June 1981.

•       Monica Lewinsky, “Shame and Survival,” Vanity Fair, June 2014. 

•        

Week 11 (Dec. 1). American conservatism and the Right 

•       Phyllis Schlafly, “What’s Wrong with ‘Equal Rights’ for Women?,” Feb. 1972.

•       Rick Perlstein, “I thought I understood the American right. Trump proved me wrong,” The New York Times, April 11, 2017.

Week 12 (Dec. 8). The politics of history writing in contemporary US & Training for the final exam   

•       Andrew Hartman, A War for the Soul of America: A History of the Culture Wars, University of Chicago Press (2015) (excerpts). 

•       David W. Blight, “The Fog of History Wars,” The New Yorker, June 9, 2021.

Week 13 (Dec. 15). Final exam  

Lizabeth Cohen, A Consumers’ Republic: The Politics of Mass Consumption in Postwar America, New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 2003.

Donald T. Critchlow, The Conservative Ascendency: How the GOP Right Made Political History, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2007.

Andrew Hartman, A War for the Soul of America: A History of the Culture Wars, Chicago, Chicago University Press, 2015. 

Ira Katznelson, Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time, New York, W. W. Norton & Company, 2013.

Jean-Michel Lacroix, Histoire du Canada: Des origines à nos jours, Paris, Tallandier

Matthew Lassiter, The Silent Majority: Suburban Politics in the Sunbelt South, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2007

James T. Sparrow, Warfare State: World War II Americans and the Age of Big Government, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2011.

Thomas Sugrue, The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1996.

Jeanne Theoharis, A More Beautiful and Terrible History: The Uses and Misuses of Civil Rights History, Boston, Beacon Press, 2018.

Stephen Tuck, We Ain’t What We Ought to Be: The Black Freedom Struggle from Emancipation to Obama, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2010.

Bertrand Van Ruymbeke,  Histoire des États-Unis - De 1492 à nos jours,  

Bernard Vincent, Histoire des États-Unis,   Champs - Champs histoire

Howard Zinn, Une histoire populaire des États-Unis, De 1492 à nos jours, Marseille, AGONE, collection l’Épreuve des faits

Presentations should focus on the documents’ main ideas, stakes, context and interest. The aim of the presentations is 1) to highlight the documents’ historical or cultural relevance and 2) to explain the document based on its context and on the author’s aim and target audience. The ultimate question to answer is : “as students of American history, what can we learn from the text?” 

Texts are available on the course’s EPI. 

FORMAT

-       Group presentations no longer than 15 minutes in total. 

-       You may have a power point but this is not mandatory. If you wish to have a power point, it needs to have a clear visual purpose (showing maps, pictures, etc.). You should comment on your slides’ contents. Please email me your power point ahead of class.

-       Class discussion at the end (see below). 

CONTENT

The introduction should contain: 

-       A hook 

-       Relevant context

-       Author information

-       The type of document and its main argument or idea. 

-       A thesis statement / an overarching question that gives direction to your entire presentation. Remember that a good analytical question starts with “how” and that a good thesis statement starts with “In this presentation, we will demonstrate that…”.

-       Your presentation’s outline. 

The development should…: 

-       Have a clear, logical outline. 

-       Tackle different aspects of the document. Each part should propose a specific reading of the document or bring something new to what had been argued previously. 

-       Explain the references when any and put them in context. 

-       Refrain from judging or correcting the author.

-       Quote directly from the text at times but without paraphrasing it. Analyze the citations you have selected.  

The conclusion should say something about the text’s reception, what the author did afterwards or if later events confirmed or contradicted what was argued in the text.

End with three questions for the rest of the class. These questions should help you make sure your classmates have understood what you have argued but also aim at comparing your thoughts and analyses to those of your classmates.

CLASS CONVERSATION

-       The three questions are the end of the conclusion need to lead to a class conversation…which is why everyone needs to come to class having read the documents.

-       The conversation is a time for Q&A, comparing ideas and interpretations as well as dissipating any misunderstanding that may have arisen during the presentation. 

-       Collective engagement in the discussion is all the more important as the final essay will need to contain references to the documents studied in class. 

TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL PRESENTATION IN ENGLISH 

As made obvious by their name, oral presentations are…oral presentations: they are not meant to be written essays read out loud. They are meant to put you in a position to deliver a clear, accessible message to your classmates. If you are not a native speaker, here are a few ways in which you can prepare for your oral presentation: 

-       Look up the pronunciation of the words you don’t know. English is a stressed language, which means you need to make sure you know how to stress words properly. For this, you can use Google pronunciation or the website < https://howjsay.com/ >. Write down the pronunciation of the words you struggle with to make sure you pronounce them properly when you are presenting. 

-       Words are stressed but so are sentences. You need to stress the most important words in your sentences – those that are key to understand the message.  

-       Pause regularly: when you end a sentence; when you give important information; during your transitions, etc. 

-       Try to give your presentation based on unfinished notes rather than on a thoroughly written essay. This will make it much easier for your classmates to understand what you are saying. 

-       Do not speak too fast.

-       Do not hesitate to practice ahead of class. 

Documentaries (some are available on Youtube or online):

-       Eyes on the prize: America’s Civil Rights Movement (14 episodes, PBS, 1987-1990) 

-       Michael Moore, Bowling for Columbine on gun violence (2002)

-       The Sixties: The Years that Shaped a Generation (PBS, 2005) 

-       Spike Lee, When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts about Hurricane Katrina (2006)

-       Cédric Tourbe, Capitalisme américain: le culte de la richesse (ARTE, 2023)

Novels and essays:

-       John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (1939)

-       Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (1952)

-       James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time (1963)

-       Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider. Essays and Speeches (1984)

-       Toni Morison, Beloved (1987)

-       Susan Faludi, Backlash. The Undeclared War Against American Women (1991)

-       Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (2010) 

-       Ta-Nehisi Coates, “The Case for Reparations,” The Atlantic (June 15, 2014)

-       Ta-Nehisi Coates, Between the World and Me (2015) Podcasts (available online): 

-       Natalia Petrzela, “Welcome to Your Fantasy,” a true crime about the Chippendales (2021)

-       Natalia Petrzela, Nicole Hemmer & Neil Young, “Past Present” (since 2015) 

-       Nicole Hemmer, “A12” about the ‘Unite the right rally” in Charlottesville, 2017 (2018)

-       Rachel Maddow, “Ultra,” MSNBC, about the far-right in American history (2023) 

-       If you are interested in contemporary issues and politics, “The Daily” (New York Times) and the “Brian Lehrer Show” (WNYC) are very good. 

Films and TV shows:

-       Michelangelo Antonioni, Zabriskie Point (1970)

-       Martin Scorsese, Taxi Driver (1976) 

-       John G. Avildsen, Rocky (1976)

-       Michael Cimino, The Deer Hunter (1978)

-       Ted Kotcheff, First Blood [Rambo] (1982) 

-       The Wire, HBO (2002-2008)

-       Tremé, HBO (2010-2013) 

-       Miniseries Show Me Hero, HBO (2015)

-       Mrs. America, HBO (2020) about Phyllis Schlafly

-       Spike Lee’s filmography (Do the Right Thing [1989], Malcolm X [1992])  -    Oliver Stone, JFK (1991), Nixon (1995)

-       Ron Howard, Hillbilly Elegy (2020) – adaptation of J. D. Vance’s memoirs

-       Arther Penn, Little Big Man