CSRC Newsletter - November 2003

Recently I was showing our library to a new faculty member. When she mentioned the need to digitize some audiotape interviews, a student interjected that he provided such a service, for a fee, since it was one of the ways he made a living. But then he paused and said, "Unless it is for the center, because if it is for the center then I will do it for free." He is not unique among our students. In the past year, as we prepared for our Maquiladora Murders conference, students would often work late into the night or on weekends. These moments - and there are many - do more than offer hope in difficult times, they constitute the very history of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC). So much of the current debate over student admissions focuses on a scarce resource - access to higher education - but not on the ways in which the students themselves contribute to the mission of the university. Indeed, in our society, the expectation of "giving something back" falls upon the alumni who have already benefited from their college education. But here we see students who enter the university - often as the first in their families - with a strong commitment to making a difference while they are at UCLA and to giving something back to their community once they graduate. Their commitment is matched by that of our staff, who have donated over $2,000 this year alone, and who have taken volunteer salary reductions in response to the state budget cuts.

 

The center's mission has always been different than most other campus research units, and much bigger than our budget allocation, since its research is deeply tied to a community that still finds itself largely excluded from the benefits of higher education. As such, the center necessarily engages in community relations, cultural and historical preservation, faculty and student development, as well as research that makes a difference. I want to thank the students and staff who make our efforts possible.

 

 

The CSRC, which has six institutional faculty positions, has announced plans to split its current open position between two departments. Each department will match the 50 percent position, thereby allowing the CSRC to leverage its resources for Chicano studies faculty in two critical areas: public health and information studies. These searches follow upon a year-long strategic planning process and represent a major cooperative effort with the UCLA School of Public Health and the UCLA School of Graduate Education and Information Studies.

 

Five hundred people attended each day of the three-day CSRC international conference "The Maquiladora Murders, Or,Who Is Killing the Women of Juárez?" The event - organized by Associate Director Alicia Gaspar de Alba - brought together scholars, students, journalists, artists, activists, writers, and policy specialists as well as mothers of the victims in a series of roundtable discussions and presentations. Congresswoman Hilda Solis, UC Regent Dolores Huerta, and playwright and activist Eve Ensler were among the featured speakers. Operación Digna provided a live stream audio broadcast of the conference via the internet. A silent art auction at the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History raised over $5,000 in support of Amigos de las Mujeres de Juárez and Casa Amiga. The artwork will be on display at the museum through the end of December. For more information on the conference and a list of the many sponsors, see Maquiladora Murders conference. Important contributions to the success of this major international conference were made by a large number of student and other volunteers, including several dedicated conference organizers: Elena Aviles, Angelica Marin, and Heather Mastertou.

 

Last month, in separate meetings, the CSRC met with Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante, Senator Gloria Romero, Assemblymember Marco Antonio Firebaugh, and Council Member Antonio Villarraigosa.

 

Joaquin Avila, visiting professor of law, will speak on "Emerging Issues in Latino Political Empowerment," on Monday, November 17, 12:00-1:00 pm, Haines Hall 179. Carlos Vélez-Ibañez, professor of anthropology, University of California, Riverside, will speak on "From Adobe to Aluminum: The Political Ecology of the Formation of Mexican Communities in the Hatch Valley Region of New Mexico," on Friday, November 21, 12:00-1:00 pm, Haines Hall 179. Lunch will be provided at both presentations. Please RSVP by sending an email to the front office.

 

José Antonio Robles Cahero, visiting professor of ethnomusicology, "Mexican Resonances in American Soundscapes: Old and New Musical Exchanges on Both Sides of the Border," Wednesday, November 12, 1:00-3:00 pm, Green Room, Schoenberg Music Building. This talk initiates a six-part series organized by the CSRC and the UCLA Department of Ethnomusicology with support from the dean of UCLArts.

 

The CSRC will host a workshop for all students interested in applying to graduate school. Panelists will include professors Ray Rocco (Political Science), Leo Estrada (Urban Planning), and Chon A. Noriega (Film and Television). It will be held Monday, November 17, 12:00-1:00 pm, Haines Hall 179. Please RSVP by sending an email to the front office.

 

Professor Michael Rodriguez, UCLA Department of Family Medicine (and CSRC Faculty Advisory Committee), will speak on "Domestic Violence and Pregnancy: A Cohort Study of Latinas" on Thursday, November 20, 4:00-5:30 pm in the Factor Building, Room #4-147. Please RSVP at 310-794-4947 or rrendon@sonnet.ucla.edu.

Professor David Hayes-Bautista, former CSRC Director and now on the CSRC Faculty Advisory Committee, will offer a graduate seminar on "Latino Health Policy: Theory, Method and Data" for the first time in winter quarter. For more information on the course and to register, please contact Virginia Conejo-Gonzalez at the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture at 310-794-0663.

 

On November 21-22, the CSRC will host a second meeting of Latino research center directors in the University of California system. Thirteen directors will participate in the meeting, which will address areas of collaboration and mutual interest, mechanisms for regular communication and coordination, and development of a UC-wide agenda in support of Latino-oriented research centers.

 

In order to continue our development of a state-of-the-art library serving the community, we are asking for contributions to the CSRC Library Fund. Donations will be used for (1) acquiring new books and reference works, (2) expanding the special archival collection, including the Hunger Strike special collection, (3) supporting library exhibitions in Chicano Studies, and (4) enhancing on-line and computer services. You can make donations to the CSRC Library Fund on-line at the CSRC Homepage ( click at CSRC Library Fund ) or go to UCLA Giving.

 

CSRC Library now offers Document Delivery for more information go to CSRC Library Document Delivery.

 

If you are not a subscriber to Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies, now is a great time to start! Our prices are going up next year, but if you send us a check for $50, we will subscribe you for two years at the old price. If you cannot afford to subscribe, make sure that your university library does. E-mail your postal address to CSRC Press in order to receive a subscription package.

 

If you would like to receive electronic versions of the Latino Policy & Issues Brief or the CSRC Research Report, please email CSRC Briefs and Reports and include in the body of your message the line (and nothing but the line) SUBSCRIBE CHICANO [first name, last name] (don't enter the brackets, just your name)

 

The CSRC Press has a new e-mail address: press@chicano.ucla.edu. All general inquiries regarding the journal, briefs, books, or reports should be directed to this address. Please update your directories accordingly.

 

The Institute of American Culture (IAC) is now taking applications for the 2004-05 Postdoctoral/Visiting Scholar Fellowship Program in Ethnic Studies. In cooperation with the UCLA Ethnic Studies Research Centers, the IAC will offer one or two fellowships that focus on intergroup or comparative research on two or more of these communities in a local, national, or global context. The deadline for application is December 31, 2003. For more information, send an email to CSRC Assistant Director Carlos M. Haro or see the IAC website.

 

The CSRC welcomes undergraduate and graduate students with an interest in Chicano Studies to work as interns and volunteers in various areas of the Center. If interested, send an inquiry to Carlos M. Haro.

To learn more about us, visit UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center.

To subscribe to this newsletter, e-mail Press and include in the body of your message the line (and nothing but the line)

SUBSCRIBE CHICANO STUDIES [first name, last name] (don't enter the brackets, just your name)