Events Archives

Braceros Exhibit: Opening Reception

Drawn from the archives of Mexico's Secretariat of Foreign Relations, this stunning collection of black and white photography explores the Bracero Program as it was seen by the men and women who lived it.

Braceros Exhibit

Drawn from the archives of Mexico's Secretariat of Foreign Relations, this stunning collection of black and white photography explores the Bracero Program as it was seen by the men and women who lived it.

LAII Lecture Series: Quill and Cross in the Borderlands

Dr. Anna M. Nogar , Department of Spanish and Portuguese

Dr. Anna M. Nogar discusses her most recent book, Quill and Cross in the Borderlands, which examines nearly four hundred years of history, folklore, literature, and art concerning the seventeenth-century Spanish nun and writer Sor María de Jesús de Ágreda, identified as the legendary “Lady in Blue” who miraculously appeared to tribes in colonial-era New Mexico and taught them the rudiments of the Catholic faith.

Musicology Colloquium Series: The Cruelty of Jazz: Toward a Hemispheric Politics of Sound

Dr. Jason Borge , University of Texas at Austin

Dr. Jason Borge discusses "The Cruelty of Jazz: Toward a Hemispheric Politics of Sound." This lecture is presented as part of the Musicology Colloquium Series.

Vamos a Leer Book Group: Juliet Takes a Breath

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for our casual Vamos a Leer book group, a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging Latinx literature for elementary, middle and high school classrooms.

Afro-Brazilian Activism, Poetry, and Journalism: 40 Years of Cadernos Negros and Quilombhoje Literatura

Esmeralda Ribeiro , Quilombhoje Literatura

Ribeiro is a journalist, writer and scholar of Afro-Brazilian Literature. In 1984, she received her BA in Journalism from the Universidade Mogi das Cruzes, Brazil. She has been a member of Quilombhoje Literatura since 1982, a group of Afro-Brazilian writers based in São Paulo. Her work has been published in 35 anthologies in Brazil and around the world. She has been consistently active in promoting the participation of black women in literature.

Teach In: Venezuela in Crisis

Join us for a panel discussion on the current crisis in Venezuela. What is happening? Is it a crisis and, if so, what led to this crisis? What is the role of U.S. foreign policy? Come ask questions and learn from a panel of scholars from Venezuela who will share their experiences and perspectives.

CNM•UNM LAS Speaker Series: Multilingualism, Language Contact and Language Endangerment in Paraguay

Jens Van Gysel , PhD Student, UNM Department of Linguistics

Jens Van Gyself, PhD Student in the UNM Department of Linguistics, shares a presentation on sociolinguistic and language revitalizatio in Paraguay.

Maya Art and Archaeology Tour - Information Session

Robyn Côté , LAII

Please join us for a *RESCHEDULED* information meeting to learn more about our upcoming international program on Maya Art and Archaeology of Mexico (May 11-20, 2019).

LAII Lecture Series: La culinaria afrodescendiente de Tamiahua

Doris Careaga Coleman , Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies

Join the LAII for a special presentation culinary experience with Dr. Doris Careaga Coleman of the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies as she presents her fifth book, La culinaria afrodescendiente de Tamiahua, focused on culinary arts and Afro-Mexican cultural traditions.

LAII Lecture Series: Merging Natural and Cultural Landscapes: Field Experiences Along the Camino real del Quindío in Colonial Colombia

Larry Larrichio , LAII Research Associate

Join us for a presentation in the LAII Lecture Series as Dr. Larry Larrichio, LAII Research Associate and alumnus, discusses the fieldwork he undertook to complete research for his dissertation and its subsequent revision, translation into Spanish, and publication in Colombia.

SOLAS Sin Fronteras Latino Film Festival

Join the Student Organization for Latin American Studies (SOLAS) for their annual Sin Fronteras Latino Film Festival, a completely free event open to the UNM and greater Albuquerque community.

Research Presentation: Cenyahtoc cintli tonacayo: huahcapatl huan tlen naman / El máiz sigue siendo nuestro muestro de ayer y hoy

Eduardo De la Cruz , Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas (IDIEZ)

Please join the LAII, El Centro de la Raza, and Chicana and Chicano Studies for a presentation with visiting speaker Eduardo De la Cruz of the Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas (IDIEZ) of Mexico.

Cooking Presentation: Fiesta de elotes y su comida sagrada: El caldo de pollo

Eduardo De la Cruz , Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas (IDIEZ)

Please join the LAII, El Centro de la Raza, and Chicana and Chicano Studies for a cooking presentation with visiting speaker Eduardo De la Cruz of the Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas (IDIEZ) of Mexico.

CNM•UNM LAS Speaker Series: The US Embassy’s Role in Human Rights in Guatemala: How Foreign Service Officers Can Make a Difference

David Lindwall , Retired Foreign Service Officer / MA Student, UNM Latin American Studies Program

David Lindwall, MA student in the Latin American Studies program, draws on his 33 years as a Foreign Service Officer in the US State Department at postings throughout Latin America and around the world.

Taller de Nahuatl: Lenguaje, cultura y tradición

Eduardo De la Cruz , Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas (IDIEZ)

Vamos a Leer Book Group: The Poet X

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for our casual Vamos a Leer book group, a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging Latinx literature for elementary, middle and high school classrooms.

LAII Lecture Series: Raramuri Criollo Cattle and Climate Change in the Desert Southwest

Dr. Andrés Cibils , Department of Animal and Range Sciences, New Mexico State University

Join the LAII for a presentation with Dr. Andrés Cibils, Professor of Rangeland Science in the Department of Animal and Range Sciences at New Mexico State University, as he discusses climate change in the desert of the southwest.

LAII Lecture Series: From Brazil to the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands: A Journalist’s Perspective on Reporting in the Americas

Simon Romero , National Correspondent, The New York Times

Join the LAII for a conversation with journalist Simon Romero, a national correspondent for The New York Times. In this role, he covers immigration and other issues in the United States. Previously, he was the Brazil bureau chief from 2011 to the 2017, covering Brazil and several other countries in South America, including Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.

LAII PhD Fellows Colloquium

Each year the LAII awards PhD Fellowships to meritorious doctoral students whose research relates to Latin America. The LAII's current PhD Fellows represent the departments of Linguistics; Spanish and Portuguese; Biology; Anthropology; History; Latin American Studies; Political Science; and Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies.

LAII Lecture Series: Our Roles in the Conceptualization and Writing of Popol Wuj: Nueva Traducción y Comentarios

Dr. James Mondloch , Latin American and Iberian Institute

Join us for a presentation in the Spring 2019 LAII Lecture Series as Dr. James Mondloch presents on conceptualizing and writing his most recent publication, Popol Wuj: Nueva Traducción y Comentarios.

Perspectives from Nicaraguan Student Activists

Lesther Alemán, Georgina Capetillo, and Jeancarlo López

Join the LAII, SOLAS, and Fort Lewis College partners for a student-activist panel presentation on the state of democracy in Nicaragua.

Interdisciplinary Lecture Series in Linguistics: Uses of Spanish and English in the Narration of a Mexican Immigrant Woman

Dr. Eduardo Hernández-Chávez , UNM Professor Emeritus of Linguistics; Former Director of Chicana/o Studies

Join us for a presentation in the Interdisciplinary Lecture Series in Linguistics as Professor Emeritus Eduardo Hernández Chávez discusses the uses of Spanish and English in the narration of a Mexican immigrant woman, his mother.

On the Road with the Migrant Caravan

Alice Driver , Journalist

Join us for a presentation with Alice Driver, a bilingual journalist based in Mexico City whose work focuses on migration, human rights and gender equality. She writes for National Geographic, Time, Longreads and CNN and is currently producing a radio story for Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting.

Vamos a Leer Book Group: The Disturbed Girl's Dictionary

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for our casual Vamos a Leer book group, a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging Latinx literature for elementary, middle and high school classrooms.

Proyecto Jaranera & Las Brujas Jaraneras

Ana Zarina Palafox Méndez

Conferencia con Ana Zarina Palafox Méndez y video documental 'El Fandango Jarocho'. Dentro de la lírica popular que está ligada a los estilos de son tradicional en México, durante el S. XX la imagen de la mujer se admitió solamente como bailadora y objeto de piropo, ya sea por usos y costumbres en las poblaciones o, en otros casos, porque los estereotipos en los nacientes medios de comunicación masiva allí la colocaron. Comenzando el S. XXI, un par de convocatorias/publicaciones reunieron a mujeres que escriben décima, la mayoría de forma personal, casi clandestina, y detonaron interesantes procesos de valoración, revitalización y análisis.

LAII Lecture Series: Asylum Seekers' Journey: Challenges along the Path

Dr. Kimberly Gauderman and Attorney Rebecca Kitson

Anti-immigration rhetoric and immigrant surveillance, detention, and deportation are defining features of U.S. politics and federal policy and practice. Attorney Rebecca Kitson and Professor and expert witness Kimberly Gauderman will discuss the recent and ongoing challenges that refugees face in the asylum process.

Embodying Fandom: Chanting in Twentieth-Century Argentine Soccer

Eduardo Herrera , Rutgers University

Argentine soccer fandom involves a nuanced set of bodily practices and a vast repertoire of chants based on radio hits and broadcast advertisement. This talk demonstrates how chanting brings together sounds and bodies in an affective public practice that incites intense feelings of social cohesion and belonging meaningful beyond what is being said with words.

Binational Banking and Financial Markets in New Mexico, Texas, and Chihuahua

Patrick Schaefer , Executive Director, Hunt Institute for Global Competitiveness

Please join us for a practical and timely presentation that not only maps the regional and binational banking and financial markets in the New Mexico, Texas, and Chihuahua region, but also addresses the challenges and opportunities these regional markets hold for New Mexico and its neighbors.

Semana Cervantina

Join the Cervantine Week from April 23rd to April 27th. Dates, times, and locations for each event can be found in the event flyer.

LADB: A Retrospective: Three Decades of Journalism on Latin America and the Caribbean

Carlos Navarro , LADB Editor

Poesía eres tú - Children´s Poetry Contest - XIX edition

Since 2000, the LAII and the Spanish Resource Center have partnered to produce this elementary school student poetry contest. Elementary school kids (from first to fifth grade) recite a poem in Spanish in the most artistic and beautiful way in front of a crowd of over 300 people.

Drugs and War: What is the Relationship?

Peter Andreas , Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University

Join us as Dr. Peter Andreas tells the story of war from antiquity to the modern age through the lens of six psychoactive drugs: alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, opium, amphetamines, and cocaine.

Cuentistas 2019 - XV edition

Since 2003, the Spanish Resource Center of Albuquerque (SRC) has overseen the Cuentistas contest, an essay contest in Spanish for New Mexico high school students. Non-native and native Spanish speakers are encouraged to submit creative writing samples for consideration in the contest. All are encouraged to participate to help demonstrate that the Spanish language is alive and thriving in New Mexico.

NHCC Children's Bilingual Book Festival

On Saturday, April 27, 2019, the National Hispanic Cultural Center (NHCC) in Albuquerque will host its first annual NHCC Children’s Bilingual Book Festival. Coinciding with National Poetry Month; Children’s Day, Book Day; Arbor Day; and Semana Cervantina/Poesía eres tú, this festival will celebrate children’s books written in Spanish and English and Native languages and English.

Interdisciplinary Lecture Series in Linguistics - The peer pressure that sounds succumb to: The effect of cumulative frequency in contexts that favor reduction

Earl K. Brown , Brigham Young University

Join us for a presentation in the Interdisciplinary Lecture Series in Linguistics with Professor Earl K. Brown, from the Department of Linguistics in Brigham Young University.

K-12 Educator’s Workshop - Before the Bracero Program

Join us for an evening of free professional development as we explore the shared history of Mexico and the United States in the early 20th century, outlining the decades and formative events that eventually led to the Bracero Program. The workshop complements the Braceros photography exhibit on display through June 30 in the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s History and Literary Arts building.

Mariachi Magnífico - Inaugural Spring Concert

Join the campus community at the SUB for a spectacular concert presented by the Mariachi Juvenil de la Universidad de Nuevo México featuring the Mariachi Herencia de Atrisco Heritage Academy HS.

Latin American Studies Convocation

The Latin American Studies (LAS) program will hold its Spring 2019 Convocation, honoring those undergraduate and graduate students who will receive LAS degrees in May and August.

¡RESILIENCIA! The Experience of Jewish Communities in Spain and The Americas

A full week of films, music, food, exhibits and lectures highlighting the extraordinary journey of the Jewish people to Spanish-speaking countries.

Border Doors: Niños en jaulas (Kids in Cages)

Summer 2019 brings the return of Border Doors: Niños en jaulas (Kids in Cages) to The University of New Mexico. Created by students at Sandi Prep, this art exhibit features full-size doors covered in multimedia collages, all intended to raise awareness and educate the public about how US government policies continue to sanction human rights violations against migrants coming to the United States.

Camina el Autor: The Iconography of Felipe Guamán Poma de Ayala, Peruvian/Quechuan Chronicler

Camina el Autor showcases the extraordinary work of Guaman Poma; explores the history of the indigenous people of Peru, Andean civilization, and Spanish conquest; and broadens our understanding of Peruvian culture and history.

The Conflicting Politics of Costa Rica/ Guatemala/Nicaragua/Panama & Their Afro/Indigenous Citizens, 1970s - 1990s

Dr. Sheryl Felecia Means , Independent Scholar

Please join the Latin American and Iberian Institute (LAII) and University Libraries for a presentation with Richard E. Greenleaf Visiting Library Dr. Sheryl Felecia Means, who will share her research on Central American Afro-Indigenous politicians and movements of the 1970s through 1990s.

Cultural dimensions of mental healthcare and differences in practices in Honduras and the U.S.A.

Dr. Karla Inestroza , Honduran Physicians for Medical Brigades

Every country has different health care determinants that influence the local healthcare situation, and culture plays a leading role when it comes to the people demanding better access to mental healthcare, which continues to be a privilege in many areas, especially in developing countries, where the healthcare services are overwhelmed by the growth of the population and do not emphasize enough over its importance, making it difficult for mental healthcare to be widely accessible or it’s importance promoted.

LAII Fall 2019 Welcome Back Reception

Each fall, the Latin American & Iberian Institute welcomes its community of faculty, students, and staff back to campus with a celebratory reception. Join us on Tuesday, August 27, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Bosque Brewing in Nob Hill. We will share in food and drink, mingle, and look forward to the semester ahead!

Occupying Schools, Occupying Land: How the Landless Workers Movement Transformed Brazilian Education

Dr. Rebecca Tarlau , Pennsylvania State University

In Occupying Schools, Occupying Land, Rebecca Tarlau explores how MST activists have pressured municipalities, states, and the federal government to implement their educational program in public schools and universities, affecting hundreds of thousands of students. Contrary to the belief that movements cannot engage the state without demobilizing, Tarlau shows how educational institutions can help movements recruit new activists, diversify their membership, increase technical knowledge, and garner political power. Drawing on twenty months of ethnographic field work, Tarlau documents how the MST operates in different regions working at times with or through the state, at other times outside it and despite it. She argues that activists are most effective using contentious co-governance, combining disruption and public protest with institutional pressure to defend and further their goals.

Vamos a Leer Book Group: Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for our casual Vamos a Leer book group, a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging Latinx literature for elementary, middle and high school classrooms. We meet each month in the "vault" space at Red Door Brewing (downtown) on Gold Ave, and welcome your participation whether you've read the whole book or just a few pages.

Apply your Skills to a Career in Diplomacy: Meet Diplomat in Residence Southwest Laura Gritz

Laura Gritz , Diplomat in Residence Southwest

The U.S. Department of State is dedicated to protecting and strengthening America’s interests abroad and right here at home. You can make a difference with the U.S. Department of State. The Department offers internships, fellowships for graduate school, funding for study abroad, jobs, and careers. All majors and backgrounds are welcome. 

Root Causes of the Central American Exodus

What is going on to drive so many families from their homes and risk everything to come to the United States? Panel discussion led by local academic leaders with experience in Central America including Dr William Stanley, director of the Latin American & Iberian Institute.

The Consulate of Mexico in NM: 170 Years of Presence and Consular Protection

Join us in celebrating the 170th anniversary of the Mexican Consulate in New Mexico! Three panelists will talk about the consular presence in New Mexico, the protections offered to families in both countries, and policies implemented throughout the consulate’s history that have promoted empowerment of immigrants and their families.

“They Say the Bones Talk”: Enforced Disappearances and the Archives of State Terror in Past and Present Mexico

Dr. Alexander Aviña , Arizona State University

Join the LAII for a presentation with Dr. Alexander Aviña, associate professor of history in the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies at Arizona State University. Aviña’s talk will discuss the history of enforced disappearances in the southwestern state of Guerrero during the 1970s, as different state agents used this terror tactic to sap popular support for radical political movements and peasant insurrection.

Vamos a Leer Book Group: Because of the Sun

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for our casual Vamos a Leer book group, a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging Latinx literature for elementary, middle and high school classrooms. We meet each month at Red Door Brewing (509 Central Avenue), and welcome your participation whether you've read the whole book or just a few pages.

Interdisciplinary Lecture Series in Linguistics: Switching On and Off Spanish Grammatical Gender in Bilingual Scenarios

Dr. Maria del Carmen Parafita-Couto , Leiden University

Gender agreement in Spanish is relatively transparent (Roca 1989). Spanish-speaking children acquire gender agreement before the age of five (Mariscal 2009) and adult speakers do not generally show any difficulties with agreement. However, what happens in bilingual situations when a speaker of Spanish also speaks another language that lacks a grammatical gender distinction? This talk will report a series of production and acceptability tasks designed to explore the behavior of Spanish grammatical gender when Spanish is spoken alongside a language that lacks grammatical gender (English, Purepecha, Basque, Papiamento). Dr. Maria del Carmen Parafita-Couto will focus on two linguistic phenomena.

LAII 40th Anniversary Celebration

Join us in celebrating the 40th anniversary of the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute! The evening will include a performance from Mariachi Juvenil and a casual presentation with alumni from each of the last four decades on how the LAII has positively influenced their professional trajectories.

Revolution in Development: Mexico and the Governance of the Global Economy

Dr. Christy Thornton , John Hopkins University

Join the LAII, Department of History, and the International Studies Institute for a presentation with Dr. Christy Thornton, assistant professor of sociology at Johns Hopkins University, as she discusses her current manuscript project, “Revolution in Development: Mexico and the Governance of the Global Economy.” This talk will uncover the hidden role of politicians, diplomats, and economists from post-revolutionary Mexico in shaping the governance of the global economy.

Climate Vulnerability & Conflict in the Central American Dry Corridor

Join the LAII, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, and the Department of Political Science for a panel discussion to explore how vulnerability to climate change in Central America is driving violence, migration, and other social changes throughout the region.

5th Annual Field Research Grant Colloquium

Join us for the LAII's fifth annual Field Research Grant Colloquium, where we will highlight graduate student scholarship. Recent FRG recipients will share their respective research experiences and findings in a series of presentations.

Car Trunk: A Multimodal Migration

Melisa Garcia

"Car Trunk: a Multimodal Migration" is an exhibition of the reconstruction of the car trunk that Melisa’s mother, as a young child, migrated to the United States inside of. The installation utilizes multimodality, testimonio, art, and storytelling to reconstruct the memory and experience of her journey to the United States in the late 1970’s when she escaped the civil war in El Salvador with her mother and two sisters. The nature of the art project is so that through the model of the testimonio others are able to also interact, engage with the art pieces at a technological intimacy. This means that participants will be able to read about the emotional, political, and traumatic history of El Salvador through QR codes that will be on the car trunk. As well, social media will be utilized to have the participants experience surpass the installation state and reach others.

Humanities, Digital Humanities, and Latinx Studies: Exploring the Interstices in Academic Libraries

Dr. Margie Montañez , Central New Mexico Community College

Centering her own navigation through a humanities doctorate, archival research, and a postdoc in academic libraries, Dr. Montañez will forefront the importance of humanities in emerging digital and scholarship trends. From Chicano/a Studies to Latin American post-custodial projects, this talk will explore the interstices and possibilities of the digital humanities to bridge the North-South information divide, ask new questions, and engage new modes of knowledge production.

Resistencia y Movimientos Armados de los Pueblos Indígenas en Michoacán: Reflexiones Históricas de una Lucha Viva

Dr. Lorena Ojeda Dávila , UNM Mexico Studies Chair

Esta charla analizará los principales movimientos de lucha y resistencia indígena que se han desarrollado en el estado de Michoacán, México, poniendo especial énfasis en el pueblo purépecha y la experiencia del pueblo de Cherán. Se hará un recuento histórico de las principales problemáticas que han enfrentado estos pueblos, fundamentalmente después de la reforma agraria, así como de las estrategias que sus habitantes han implementado a lo largo del tiempo para contrarrestarlas.

Music, Power, and Signification: A Phenomenological Reading of Race in New Spain

Jesus Ramos-Kittrell , University of Connecticut

In New Spain, an institutional structure of merit and promotion hinged on the idea of reason as an intrinsically European attribute. This attribute differentiated 'Europeans' from people of mixed race claiming European status based on their skin complexion. Given the effective impulses permeating ideas about reason in New Spain, this paper considers reason in light of musico-phenomenological strategies that racialized subjects used to re-write their bodies. Such process problematizes the philosophical purview of the Enlightenment's civilizing mission, and the historical narrative of its political project.

Building a Resilient Tomorrow: How to Prepare for the Coming Climate Disruption

Dr. Leonardo Martinez-Diaz , Global Director of the Sustainable Finance Center at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C.

Global Director of the Sustainable Finance Center at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C., Dr. Leonardo Martinez-Diazhas a remarkable résumé, having formerly served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy and Environment in the U.S. Department of the Treasury. In this role, he served as one of the nation’s principal representatives in the negotiations leading to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. Dr. Martinez-Diaz will give a presentation entitled “Global Climate Change Policy”, based on his recent book, Building a Resilient Tomorrow: How to Prepare for the Coming Climate Disruption.

Master’s in Latin American Studies Info Session

UNM continues to be one of the best places in the country for Latin American-focused scholarship. Join the Latin American Studies program for an information session to learn more.

K-12 Educator’s Workshop: Winter Celebrations in Latin America

Join the UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute for an evening of free professional development as we explore winter holidays celebrated in Latin America!

Spanish Language and Culture Assistants Program Info Session

Mariola Sánchez Cascón , Education Advisor, Embassy of Spain

Would you like to spend a school year in Spain, getting to know its culture and people while improving your Spanish and collaborating with other foreign language teachers in school tasks? Join us for an info session to learn more about the Language and Culture Assistants program!