CSRC Newsletter - May 2015

The CSRC is honored to have published the just-released collection of Shifra Goldman’s writings on Chicano art edited by professor Charlene Villaseñor Black.  These essays stand as foundational works that imbricate Chicano studies and art history. Charlene—who also chairs the CSRC’s Faculty Advisory Committee—provides an insightful introduction to Shifra’s life and scholarship. What I would like to offer here is a personal reflection, drawn from my foreword for the book.

 

My first memory of Shifra is of us standing in the parking lot of Self Help Graphics and Art in fall 1997. I no longer remember the event that had just taken place that evening, only that we spent the next hour or so in a spirited and sometimes heated debate about art and politics that lasted until our two cars were the only ones that remained.  I had met Shifra years earlier through my mentor, Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, but this evening was the first time in which we each had a chance to kick the tires, as it were. For me, a junior scholar then, it was a significant encounter with a foundational figure in the study of Chicano, Latino, and Latin American art history, and someone with extensive and hard-won credentials in the social justice movements of the twentieth century. And so my initiation into art history starts not in an academic department, archive, or museum, but in the parking lot of a community-based arts organization in East L.A., arguing with a larger-than-life Jewish woman about surrealism.

 

The occasion for our debate was an essay in a recent issue of Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies. I had become editor in 1996, returning the journal to a regular publication schedule, and this issue was the first with all new contributions under my editorship. We covered a lot of terrain, but what I remember most is that while there was little common ground, Shifra never failed to acknowledge the competing intellectual frameworks from which our argument proceeded. Hers was not a politics of dogma and consensus, but rather one of debate and difference. In the end, Shifra and I agreed to disagree, productively, and with some degree of compassion: we called it a night since we were both quite tired. . . . And we each got into our cars smiling.

 

There’s no doubt that Shifra was, as Mari Carmen Ramírez explains in the book, “an innate warrior,” serving as a role model and mentor for other scholars and curators. Her scholarship contributed to a larger “cultural reclamation project” with broad and systemic features—bibliographic, archival, and intellectual—oriented toward disciplinary and political change within a hemispheric vision. Today her papers are archived at the University of California, Santa Barbara, providing an invaluable resource for future generations. But what is essential to remember is that Shifra’s personal archive was based not just on artifacts but also on her close and attentive ongoing relationships with the artists. As such, Shifra was the oracle in the archive, speaking to subsequent generations of scholars about the importance of a personal, professional, and political involvement in Chicano art as more than just an object of study, and as more than the symbols for a discrete identity.

 

Chon A. Noriega

Director and Professor

 

Spotlight: Tradition and Transformation

Shifra M. Goldman was a groundbreaking art historian who pioneered the study of Chicano art. Tradition and Transformation: Chicana/o Art from the 1970s through the 1990s is an illustrated collection of her essays, representing not only Goldman’s influential scholarship on Chicana/o art but also her archival efforts and political activism. Charlene Villaseñor Black, UCLA art history professor and chair of the CSRC Faculty Advisory Committee, edited the collection and wrote the introduction. She notes that the essays are “outstanding examples of social art history, as Goldman demonstrates the entwined connections between art and politics and how social art history can engage with postmodernism, multiculturalism, feminism, and transnationalism.” The book may be ordered through the distributor, the University of Washington Press. Through the month of May, however, the title is available at half price (shipping additional) when purchased directly through the CSRC; contact Darling Sianez at support@chicano.ucla.edu or 310-825-3428 to order. On Thursday, May 14, 3:30–4:00 p.m., Villaseñor Black will sign copies of the book in the CSRC conference room, 179 Haines Hall, for UCLA students, staff, and faculty. Look for more signing events in the near future.

 

CSRC at IUPLR Conference

Last month the Inter University Program for Latino Research (IUPLR) held its fifth Siglo XXI conference, “Intra-Latinos/as: Entre Latinos/as: Reconceptualizing Nations, Regions, and Disciplines,” at the University of Notre Dame. CSRC director Chon A. Noriega chaired the panel “Recovering Performance,” which featured presentations by Leticia Alvarado, assistant professor of American studies and ethnic studies at Brown University and CSRC visiting scholar; Colin Gunckel, assistant professor of screen arts and cultures, American culture, and Latina/o studies at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and former CSRC arts project coordinator; and Ernesto Chávez, associate professor of history at the University of Texas, El Paso and this year's CSRC IAC postdoctoral scholar. The CSRC is a founding member of the IUPLR.

 

No Más Bebés to premiere at Los Angeles Film Festival

The documentary No Más Bebés, directed Renee Tajima-Peña, will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival, June 10–18, as part of L.A. Muse, a competitive section for Los Angeles-focused independent films. The documentary investigates the experiences of Mexican-origin women who contend that they were coercively sterilized at the Los Angeles County–USC Medical Center (LAC+USC) during the late 1960s and early 1970s. The filmmaker notes that the film “tells the story of a group of mothers, young Chicano/a lawyers and activists, and a whistle-blowing doctor, who faced public exposure and stood up to powerful institutions in the name of justice.” Tajima-Peña is an award-winning filmmaker and professor of Asian American studies and the Alumni and Friends of Japanese American Ancestry Endowed Chair at UCLA. A research grant from the CSRC supported the initial phase of development of an interactive website project on the history of women’s reproductive choice, particularly as related to sterilization practices targeting women of Mexican-descent in California and the United States. The film and the website project are based on the research of co-producer Virginia Espino, program coordinator for Latina and Latino history at the UCLA Center for Oral History Research and CSRC Faculty Advisory Committee member, who consulted the Carlos Vélez-Ibáñez Sterilization Papers at the CSRC, and some scenes were filmed in the CSRC Library. A CSRC grant also supported the digitization of documents from the collection, which will be placed on the website in the future.  For more information, see Tajima-Peña’s 2013 article in the Scholar & Feminist Online here. To watch the official trailer, click here. For more information about the LAFF, visit the website.

 

New videos on CSRC YouTube

“Chicanas Behind the Cameras”

An editorial inspired by the CSRC screening of the documentary Rebel.  (See News for a video of the Q&A with director María Agui Carter that followed the screening.)

FEM, April 22, 2015 (PDF)

 

“UCLA Professor Brings Chicana/o, Latina/o Culture to Hill Residents”

A profile of Charlene Villaseñor Black, professor of art history, chair of the CSRC Faculty Advisory Committee, and faculty-in-residence for the Chican@/Latin@ Studies theme community in Sproul Hall.

Daily Bruin, April 21, 2015 (PDF)

 

“From the Archives: TV Giant Don Francisco Celebrates 50 Years of ‘Sabato Gigante’”

Following the announcement of Francisco’s retirement, the Los Angeles Times reran an article that quotes CSRC director Chon A. Noriega.

Los Angeles Times, April 17, 2015 (PDF)

 

“How Can Urban Planners Help Fix Gentrification? Pay More attention to Artists”

CSRC director Chon A. Noriega as well as L.A. Xicano co-curator Pilar Tompkins Rivas and Phantom Sightings co-curator Rita Gonzalez are mentioned in this op-ed on the transformative power of art in public spaces.

Quartz, April 15, 2015 (PDF)

 

“Hate Radio: No Insult Is Avoided, No Humor Understood”

The CSRC and National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) study and resulting working paper Social Networks for Hate Speech: Commercial Talk Radio and New Media (July 2012)  are cited in this opinion piece.

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, April 7, 2015 (PDF)

 

“When Crime Fiction Matters: A Transborder Dialogue with Lucha Corpi, Alicia Gaspar de Alba, and Patricia Valladares”

A preview of an event held at the CSRC on April 29.

La Bloga, April 3, 2015 (PDF)

 

All “In the News” articles are available in PDF format on the CSRC website.

 

Symposium: “LA/LA: Place and Practice”

Saturday, May 2, and Monday, May 4

The San Diego Museum of Art and the Getty Center

“LA/LA: Place and Practice,” a two-day symposium, will explore the complexities of the Los Angeles–Latin American relationship and their impact on cultural practices in the border region. Topics will include Latino representation in art criticism, artist-driven community initiatives, the impact of migration on cultural production, and the role of the archive in pedagogy, curation, and related fields. The event, which will be presented as a series of public conversations, will be held at The San Diego Museum of Art on Saturday, May 2, and at the Getty Center on Monday, May 4. CSRC director Chon A. Noriega will be among the speakers. “LA/LA: Place and Practice” is organized by Ken Gonzales-Day, Bill Kelley Jr., and L.A. Xicano co-curator Pilar Tompkins Rivas, and Scripps College, the Getty Foundation, the Getty Research Institute, and The San Diego Museum of Art in conjunction with Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA. The event is supported by a grant from the Getty Foundation. For more information, visit the Getty website. RSVP here.

 

Book Talk: Maya Chinchilla presents The Cha Cha Files: A Chapina Poética

Monday, May 11, 2:00–4:00 p.m.

CSRC Library–144 Haines Hall

The Cha Cha Files: A Chapina Poética (Kórima Press, 2014) by Maya Chinchilla examines the Central American-Guatemalan diaspora and the myths that have arisen from the many conflicts in the region. The cover copy notes that the book “honors Central American feministas, Long Beach roqueras, families divided by war, lovers separated by borders, and celebrates the pleasure and heartbreak of femmes, machas, y mariconadas.” The event is co-sponsored by the UCLA César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o Studies, the UCLA Latin American Institute, the Department of Gender Studies, the Office of Instructional Development, and the CSRC.

 

Panel: “Organizing Latino Immigrants in the Informal Economy: The Successful Case of the Association of Latin American Gardeners of Los Angeles”

Wednesday, May 13, 3:00–5:00 p.m.

CSRC Library–144 Haines Hall

The successful grassroots organizing campaign of a small group of Latino gardeners will be the focus of a panel discussion at the CSRC. The gardeners, working with a few Chicana/o activists, formed the Association of Latin American Gardeners of Los Angeles to challenge a city ordinance that criminalized the use of leaf blowers. Their activism led to the amendment of the draconian law. Participating in the discussion will be Alvaro Huerta, assistant professor of urban and regional planning and ethnic and women’s studies at Cal Poly Pomona; Adrian Alvarez, community activist and cofounder of the ALAGLA; Jaime Aleman, cofounder of ALAGLA; Juan Gómez-Quiñones, professor of history, UCLA; Scott L. Cummings, professor of law, UCLA School of Law; and Victor Narro, project director of the UCLA Labor Center and lecturer in the UCLA School of Law. A light reception will follow the discussion. For more information about the ALAGLA and its historic campaign, see Alvaro Huerta and Alfonso Morales’s essay “The Formation of a Grassroots Movement: The Association of Latin American Gardeners of Los Angeles Challenges City Hall” in the Fall 2014 issue of Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies. The event is organized by the CSRC and co-sponsored by the UCLA César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o Studies, David J. Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy at UCLA School of Law, UCLA Department of History, UCLA Department of Urban Planning, UCLA International Institute, UCLA International Program on International Migration, UCLA Latin American Institute, UCLA Labor Center, UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, and URBAN-LA.

 

Book Talk: Authors-Meet-Critics on Skills of the 'Unskilled': Work and Mobility Among Mexican Migrants

Friday, May 15, 12:00–1:30 p.m.

Sociology Seminar Room–279 Haines Hall

Skills of the "Unskilled": Work and Mobility among Mexican Migrants (UC Press, 2015), by Jacqueline Hagan, Rubén Hernández-León, and Jean-Luc Demonsant, will be the focus of a panel discussion between authors Hagan, Robert G. Parr Distinguished Term Professor of Sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Hernández-León, associate professor of sociology at UCLA and director of the UCLA Center for Mexican Studies, and critics Chris Tilly, director of UCLA’s Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE), and Frank Bean, Chancellor's Professor in the School of Social Sciences and director of the Center for Research on Immigration, Population and Public Policy at UC Irvine. The participants will discuss the study that led to the book—a five-year investigation of migrants’ labor patterns, including the acquisition and transfer of skills, occupational mobility, and entrepreneurship. The authors’ findings drew on interviews with 320 Mexican migrants and return migrants in North Carolina and Guanajuato, Mexico. The event is sponsored by the UCLA International Institute and UCLA Program on International Migration and cosponsored by the IRLE, the CSRC and the UCLA Center for Mexican Studies. Additional support comes from the International Institute, UCLA Interdisciplinary and Cross-campus Affairs, the UCLA School of Law, the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, and the Irene Flecknoe Ross Lecture Series in the Department of Sociology.

 

bozalta Launch Event: “Untamed: Cultivating Collaboration in Arts, Activism and Scholarship”

Friday, May 15, 5:00–8:30 p.m.

CSRC Library–144 Haines Hall

Join us to launch bozalta—a new online, open-access, interactive journal whose purpose is to cultivate conversations among those involved in academia, the arts, and activism. The journal, which is rooted in Chicana feminist thought, showcases work that is collaborative, community-focused, and critically engaged. The event will include discussions, performances, and a pop-up gallery and is intended to further develop a bozalta community. Refreshments will be served following the presentations. The launch is cosponsored by the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center, the UCLA César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o Studies, UCLA GSA Publications, and UCLA SPARC.

 

IAC 45th Anniversary Celebration: “Honoring Our Founders”

Wednesday, May 20, 6:00–8:00 p.m.

UCLA Faculty Center–California Room

Vice provost M. Belinda Tucker cordially invites you to celebrate the forty-fifth anniversary of the Institute of American Culture's ethnic studies research centers at UCLA: American Indian Studies Center, Asian American Studies Center, Chicano Studies Research Center, and the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies. The occasion will honor those who, through their academic excellence, vision, dedication, bravery, and fortitude, established these unique and enduring institutions. Please join us in celebrating this significant anniversary. RSVP by Friday, May 15, to iac@support.ucla.edu or (310) 206-6639. Complimentary parking will be available in Lot 2.

 

Book Talk: Rubén G. Rumbaut presents Immigrant America: A Portrait

Friday, May 22, 1:30–3:00 p.m.

CSRC Library - 144 Haines Hall

Rubén G. Rumbaut, professor of sociology at UC Irvine and founding chair of the International Migration Section of the American Sociological Association, will discuss the evolution of “Immigrant America” over the past half century. Rumbaut is co-author of Immigrant America: A Portrait, now in its fourth edition. Since the publication of the first edition in 1990, immigration has transformed the United States, and it is once again a nation of immigrants. More than 40 million residents are foreign born, and more than a quarter of them are undocumented and the subject of state persecution. Rumbaut will discuss this historic change along two narrative axes: diversity and inequality. A light reception will follow the talk. The event is part of the Irene Flecknoe Ross Lecture Series and co‐sponsored by UCLA César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o Studies, UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center and the Department of Sociology Contentious Politics and Organizations Working Group.

 

Symposium: “Contesting Global Police Violence”

Wednesday, May 27, 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

CSRC Library–144 Haines Hall

"Contesting Global Police Violence," the first annual symposium organized by Regeneración Tlacuilolli: UCLA Raza Studies Journal, will focus on issues relating to policing, police violence, and militarized state oppression. Participants will discuss the response of transnational social movements to violence, incarceration, and disappearances and the importance of ties between local, regional, and transnational activists in the fight for social survival. The guest speakers will be Juan Gómez-Quiñones, professor of history at UCLA, and Roberto Rodríguez, assistant professor of Mexican American studies at the University of Arizona. Community members, students, and academics are welcome. Regeneración Tlacuilolli is edited and managed by graduate students in various disciplines at UCLA and other campuses across the United States. The journal is sponsored by the CSRC and is available on eScholarship.

 

All CSRC events are free and do not require an RSVP unless otherwise noted. Programs are subject to change. For the most current information, visit the Events page on the CSRC website.

 

Thank you, Raul Fuentes

The CSRC Library would like to thank Raul Fuentes for helping with the processing of the Roberto Sifuentes Papers. Fuentes has been interning at the library for the past several weeks through the Archdiocesan Youth Employment services program. A Los Angeles native, he graduated from John Marshall High School in 2014. He is active with UCLA MeChA, Grupo Folklórico, and the UCLA LGBT Center and hopes to pursue a degree in theater studies and Chicana/o studies at UCLA. Although his internship has come to an end, he has graciously agreed to continue helping with CSRC collections through the library’s volunteer program.

 

To learn more about CSRC collections and projects, please email your queries to the CSRC librarian, Lizette Guerra, at lguerra@chicano.ucla.edu.

 

Register for online access to Aztlán

Current subscribers to Aztlán may now register for online access to the journal through ingentaconnect.com. If you have problems accessing your account or questions about your subscription, please contact support@chicano.ucla.edu. Subscriptions to Aztlán include two print issues a year plus full online access to every issue published. Subscribe today!