Decolonizing Bodies in Public Health

Smitha Gundavajhala sgundavajhala@berkeley.edu

Viviana Lletget vlletget@berkeley.edu
Emaan Siddique emaansiddique@berkeley.edu
Nicole Rigler nicolerigler@berkeley.edu
Mondays 6-8 pm, 130 Dwinelle

This is a course aimed at recapturing the narrative in conversations surrounding global

health a class that looks at global health from the perspective of the colonized. It will seek
to examine long cultural histories of health, healing and medicine; talk about colonial
gambits that have had longstanding impacts on the health and infrastructure of colonized
populations; about colonial narratives in public health academia, and about how to name
and reframe microaggressions in global health conversations.
There are no prerequisites, but your presence and willingness to learn/engage in dialogue are a must!
GRADING: The course is pass/no pass, so everything will be graded on a satisfactory
completion basis. If your completion of an assignment or your participation in a category is
unsatisfactory, we will reach out to you and work with you to arrange a makeup
participation opportunity or a way to learn the material and make up the assignment. We
want everyone to succeed and grasp the material!
ATTENDANCE: Attendance is mandatory! You may miss no more than 2 classes, excused
absences included. If you have a special circumstance or emergency, please email both of the
course facilitators within 2 days after the missed class and we will arrange a makeup plan for
you earlier is preferred. As we only meet once a week and cover a lot, in-person time is
crucial!
-2-hour lectures each week, with a mix of presentations, discussion, activities and speakers
-reflection papers each week, due Sunday at midnight the day before class. These will
include a brief summary of the readings, 3 questions on the content and 1 objection to the
content/argumentation to get you ready for the discussions we will have each week!
-a presentation & paper on a case study/topic of your choice
-present your own lecture! (optional)
AN IMPORTANT NOTE ON MENTAL HEALTH: Trauma is real and much of this course
focuses on systemic violence, so students may find some of the content to be triggering.

Either way, preserving and nurturing mental health is very important to us, so please make
use of the following resources, and talk to us if we can support you in any way.
Counseling and Psychological Services at the Tang Center: https://uhs.berkeley.edu/counseling
-Please call (510) 642-9494 or stop by the office on the 3rd floor of the Tang Center to make an
appointment with a counselor.
-Drop-in counseling for emergencies: Monday - Friday, 10:00AM - 5:00PM After hours
counseling: In the case of emergencies at night or on weekends, call (855) 817-5667 for free
assistance and referrals. Request to speak with a counselor.
-For emergency support: Call UCPD 911 or (510) 642-3333
24 Hour Crisis Hotlines:
-Alameda County Crisis Line: (offers confidentiality, TDD services for deaf and hearing impaired
callers and translation in 140 languages). Call 1-800-309-2131.
-National Crisis Help Line: Call 1-800-273-TALK
-Crisis Text Line: Text HELLO to 741741
-National HopeLine Network: Call 1-800-SUICIDE
Centers for Educational Justice & Community Engagement: http://ejce.berkeley.edu/
Includes: African-American Student Development, Asian Pacific American Student Development,
Chicanx Latinx Student Development, Gender Equity Resource Center, Multicultural Community
Center, Native American Student Development
Student-to-Student Peer Counseling at Berkeley: https://sspc.berkeley.edu/
Peer Counseling at the Berkeley Free Clinic: http://www.berkeleyfreeclinic.org/peer-counseling/

Week 1: Histories of Health the world of health and healing that existed prior to colonial activity
PRE-READING (we will not be discussing these readings in class until Week 2):
1. PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND SOCIAL FUNDAMENTALS OF ANCIENT INDIAN AND
CHINESE MEDICINE p 4 - 20
2. WITCHCRAFT, SORCERY OR MEDICAL PRACTICE? The Demand, Supply and
Regulation of Indigenous Medicines In Durban, South Africa (1844-2002) p 8 15

Week 2: Brief History of Colonial Activity the Western story of the world, and how the story is told
PRE-READING:
REQUIRED:

James Cook OR Ferdinand Magellan reading (TeacherVision/InfoPlease)

Columbus Activity
Just Where Was Columbus?
Why ethnic studies programs are good for California, and America:
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-remnick-ethnic-studies-alejo20140703-story.html
o Decolonized, Not Diverse (Samudzi): http://harlot.media/articles/1058/we-needa-decolonized-not-a-diverse-education
SUPPLEMENTAL:
o Decolonizing Pedagogy in the American Classroom:
http://www.innovation.cc/scholarlystyle/buttaro_pecolonizing_pedagogy_3april09final4.pdf
o Decolonizing the Classroom:
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/23_02/deco232.shtml
o
o
o
o

Week 3: Colonial Aftermath a look at the immediate impacts of colonial activity on the health of
colonized populations
PRE-READING:
REQUIRED:
o Penina Uliuli Chapter 9: Colonialism, Acculturation, and Depression among
Knaka Maoli of Hawaii p 180 191
SUPPLEMENTAL:
o Guns, Germs and Steel Chapter 11: LETHAL GIFT OF LIVESTOCK (The
evolution of germs) p 195 214

Week 4: Bodies as Battlegrounds how colonialism controlled, classified, and violated bodies as a
mechanism of conquest
PRE-READING:
Sterilization Racism and Pan-Ethnic Disparities of the Past Decade: The Continued
Encroachment on Reproductive Rights p 17 21, Discussion (p 28)
The Cultural Politics of Body Size: Abstract, Unraveling Euro-American Constructs
(Theoretical Overview), The Cultural Constitution of Bodies

Week 5: Reduced Resilience and Capacity examples of colonizer-created infrastructural disadvantage

with significant health impacts for formerly colonized societies
PRE-READING:

REQUIRED:
o A brief (Western) history of Liberia:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/liberia/essays/history/
o Health crisis in Liberia - the long road to recovery:
http://www.who.int/features/2003/09b/en/
o How paradise became the fattest place in the world:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/health/pacific-islands-obesity/
o Overweight and Obesity Prevalence among Public School Children in Guam:
Introduction and Discussion only
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4503469/
SUPPLEMENTAL:
o Why Back To Africa? And : How Voluntary Was The Return To Africa of People
of Color and Freed
Slaves? http://www.liberiapastandpresent.org/ColonizationSociety.htm
o Encountering Poverty, Ananya Roy
This is a whole book! Its a reading recommendation, and you will not need
to have read it for this class.

Week 6: Neocolonial Structures how the power dynamics and imagery of colonialism are reproduced
in public health service and academic work today
PRE-READING:
Medical Apartheid Chapter 3: Profitable Wonders (how modern day child birthing practices
came from the abuse of slavewomen in the 1800's)

Climate change and indigenous peoples in the United States: impacts, experiences and actions.
Chapter 7: The impact of climate change on tribal communities in the US: displacement,
relocation, and human rights p 1 -14
o Foucault lecture: racism is inherent to the organization of a society

Week 7: Rebuilding Public Health the politics of disaster relief and critical aid
PRE-READING:
The Philippines Next Challenge: Rebuilding Its Public Health:
http://healthland.time.com/2013/11/11/the-philippines-next-challenge-rebuilding-itspublic-health/
Culture of Health: Rebuilding Public Health in Haiti: http://www.rwjf.org/en/culture-ofhealth/2013/02/rebuilding_publiche.html
[CSIS Global Health Policy Center report] The Road to Recovery: Rebuilding Liberias
Health System p 3 - 14

Week 8: Savior Narrative a birds eye view of the culture of public health (and a wary eye on the savior
narrative)
PRE-READING:
o Samaritans Purse: What We Do:
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/medical/serve-with-world-medical-mission/
o Doctors Without Borders: How We Work:
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/our-work/how-we-work
o Voluntourism: To Hell With Good Intentions (Illich)
o #InstagrammingAfrica: The Narcissism of Global Voluntourism:
https://psmag.com/instagrammingafrica-the-narcissism-of-global-voluntourisme5001bf57fdf - .qcep9797f

Week 9: Public Health in Academia how public health institutions can be blind to bias in research and
employment
PRE-READING:
REQUIRED:
o Faculty of Color: Introduction and Emerging Themes
o Racism and Research: The Case of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study
http://www.med.navy.mil/bumed/Documents/Healthcare%20Ethics/Racism-AndResearch.pdf
SUPPLEMENTAL:
https://www.wwu.edu/eoo/docs/Best%20Practices_Recruiting%20and%20Retaining%20Sta
ff%20of%20Color.pdf

Week 10: Inclusive Discourse and Spaces naming and reframing microaggressions in global health
conversations (and a peek at Decolonizing Pedagogy)
PRE-READING:
On trigger warnings:
http://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2016/09/21/493913099/content-notice-hereare-a-few-ways-professors-use-trigger-warnings
PTSD and Microaggressions: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/culturallyspeaking/201509/the-link-between-racism-and-ptsd
Decolonizing Pedagogy in the American Classroom: http://www.innovation.cc/scholarlystyle/buttaro_pecolonizing_pedagogy_3april09final4.pdf

Content-Area Conversations Chapter 1: Why Talk Is Important in Classrooms:

http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/108035/chapters/Why-Talk-Is-Important-inClassrooms.aspx
o social determinants shape what participation looks like

Week 11: SPRING RECESS

Week 12: Historical Trauma centuries of disadvantage and historical trauma get under the skin (and
into DNA)
PRE-READING: none work on presentations

Week 13: Students Choice Lecture, Presentations Begin

PRE-READING: sourced by students
Possible topics:
o Gentrification, homelessness and health
o The importance of data disaggregation in public health research
o Cultural healing practices and modern-day appropriation
o Colonialisms impact on beauty and dangers of skin whitening
o Environmental racism: case study

Week 14: Reflections (+ Presentations continued)

NO PRE-READING

Contributors: Brittney Enin, Seth Holmes, Linh Chuong, Nicole Rigler, Michael Huynh, Miguel Flores, Monica
Casanova, Smitha Gundavajhala