This course will analyze the changing demographics of San Francisco from a Gold Rush town to a blue-collar manufacturing and shipping center to a technology hub, and how those changes impacted the City’s politics. Students will learn about the evolution of the “strong mayor” system of government and the relationship between the executive (Mayor’s Office) and legislative (Board of Supervisors) branches of City government. Students will also examine San Francisco as a case study in federalism by evaluating how the national government (e.g. the Hetch Hetchy water system and the New Deal programs) and the California state government (e.g. the “great freeway revolt”) have shaped the City and County of San Francisco. Furthermore, students will study how San Francisco became a center of the civil rights, free speech, anti-war, and gay rights movements, particularly from the 1960s to the present.
U.S. Government: San Francisco Case Studies
Course No: 5454
Subject: Social Science
Grade Level: 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: A
Prerequisite: Introduction to Ethnic Studies, Modern World History, and US Cultures & Histories
Criteria for Enrollment: None
Fulfillments: US Government requirement