Skidmore College to host Social (In)Justice at the U.S.-Mexico Border series
The series, Sept. 18 through Oct. 16, will feature lectures by specialists, conversations with activists, and workshops with artists, among other events. Through dialogue, exhibitions, and performances, attendees will be challenged to recognize how “border issues” not only acutely impact those navigating the borderlands, but also how they concern us all. Topics include border-crossing, farmworkers, and the environmental consequences of the wall.
“Borders are built by people who want to keep other people away from them. They, by design, project a built-in social hierarchy that screams, ‘We have power over you, the places you go, the people you see, and sometimes your very survival,’” said Diana Barnes, Skidmore senior teaching professor of Spanish and co-organizer of the series.
Highlights of the series, which aims to draw attention to the human consequences of evolving border policies, include:
The series, supported by Skidmore College’s Office of the President, Racial Justice Initiative, and contributing departments, programs, and offices across campus, is organized and coordinated by Senior Teaching Professor Barnes and Oscar Pérez Hernández, associate professor, director of Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx studies, NY6 Mellon fellow, and special assistant to the dean of the faculty.
Social (In)Justice at the U.S.-Mexico Border coincides with National Hispanic Heritage Month, highlighting the intricate connections between this liminal space and U.S. Latinx identities, histories, and experiences.
