In Spring 2021, the Global Inequality Research Initiative (GIRI) course focused on “Athletes and Activism”. We examined inequalities through study of the history of social protest in athletics and current protest movements in amateur and professional sports around the world.

The lead instructor for the course is Solomon Hughes, PhD, and former men’s basketball player for the University of California, Berkeley.

Through a series of virtual (remote) lectures, undergraduate and graduate students engaged with instructors and guest speakers in discussions surrounding the structural inequities that arise in amateur and professional athletics, recent disruptions to sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic and political resistance to anti-Black violence. Students completed a semester-long research project of their choosing as part of the course.

Additional details: For the first time in Spring 2021, the Global Inequality Research course begins its service as the required capstone course for the newly launched Inequality Studies Minor at Duke. Now jointly listed as Public Policy 435S and Public Policy 645S, the course has increased capacity for students to expand their study of social inequality.