PSC 353 - Terrorism and Torture

Course Units: 1

(Winter; Angrist) This course considers the definition(s) and history of terrorism, as well as its causes and manifestations in the contemporary era. Next, strategies for combating terrorism will be explored - with a major focus on the so-called “war on terror” the U.S. has been engaged in since 2001. A particularly controversial aspect of U.S. actions in the past decade has been the use of torture against detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib, and other locations. The course will therefore consider a broad-ranging literature on torture - from its history, to the conditions under which it is used in the contemporary era, to questions regarding whether or not torture is effective (and for what purpose).