The Covid-19 pandemic is a global event unlike any other experienced in the contemporary era. 

Its size, scope, reach and implications are enormous and ongoing.

The consequences, from how people all over the world will live their daily lives to whether democracy will survive, are all in question. One of the most important implications of the deadly novel coronavirus is its unequal impact. We have rapidly shifted from initially describing it as “a great equalizer” and “an equal opportunity killer” to now understanding the profoundly unequal impact it has had (and will continue to have) among and across different communities globally —  from marginalized ethnic, racial and economic groups, to occupational and gender groups, to various countries and their public health systems — and how people in different countries, regions, and states are experiencing the crisis because of varying public policy responses.

This course is designed as a broad survey of many of the themes most of interest to social scientists and public policy experts.  Students will be introduced to fundamental concepts in the fields, learn to think like social scientists and engage in a highly interactive course in which we will meet twice a week – once all together to hear from guest speakers and panels of experts in many of the different areas we will explore and once in a small section taught by a full-time professor in the Political Science & Legal Studies Department.  Students will engage with our guest speakers, professors, and one another through discussions, a common blog, and also chronicle their own experiences with Covid-19 in a projects run through the Moakley Archive, here at Suffolk.