Ethnic Studies

Welcome to Ethnic Studies 

The Ethnic Studies Department at Contra Costa College is made up of four majors, African American Studies, Ethnic Studies, La Raza Studies, and Social Justice to Transfer. Each major offers a unique blend of interdisciplinary courses ranging from history, theater and film to social justice theories.  

As a discipline, Ethnic Studies began as a struggle to decolonize educational institutions or move away from practices and classrooms that centered whiteness and white supremacy. Under student leadership and with the support of faculty member Dr. Nathan Hare, Black students at San Francisco State University (SFSU) demanded that the university create a department of Black Studies. They were joined by Latina/o/x, Native and Asian American/Pacific Islander students, creating the Third World Liberation Front, and held a yearlong strike which would culminate in the creation of Black Studies, other departments of Ethnic Studies, and a nationwide movement for culturally inclusive education.