This panel discussion is the second event being offered in conjunction with Special Collections’ exhibit, “Tucson: Growth, Change and Memories.” The exhibit, which explores various aspects of Tucson’s history and growth as an urban community, opens on Aug. 17 and runs through Jan. 14, 2016. The panel features an eclectic group of four Tucsonans, remembering life from the 1950s onward. Joining us to share their stories will be former City Councilwoman Molly McKasson, business owner Katya Peterson, newspaper columnist Ernesto Portillo, Jr., and Lydia Otero, Professor of Mexican American Studies.
From the Special Collections website: “This lecture by renowned writer and professor Dr. Thomas E. Sheridan, is the opening event for Special Collections’ new exhibition, “Tucson: Growth, Change, and Memories.” The exhibition explores various aspects of Tucson’s history and growth as an urban community.
Sheridan is a Research Anthropologist at the Southwest Center, which is dedicated to documenting and interpreting the region’s natural and human cultures. He also serves as Professor of Anthropology in the University of Arizona School of Anthropology. He has conducted ethnographic and ethnohistoric research in the Southwest and northern Mexico since 1971 and directed the Mexican Heritage Project at the Arizona Historical Society from 1982-1984. He is the author of a number of works about the history of the region, including “Los Tucsonenses: The Mexican Community in Tucson, 1854-1941” and “Arizona: A History,” now in its second edition.
The evening’s lecture focuses on changes wrought in the Mexican community in the past 75 years as the result of rapid urbanization. The lecture will be followed by a reception.”
Tom Sheridan spoke to a packed house.
Tom Sheridan and Bob Diaz
This lady was shocked, but happy to find her car parked in front of the Otero House.
“Visions of the Borderlands: Three Women Writers Share Their Stories”, featured the writers Denise Chavez, Patricia Preciado Martin, and Natalie Diaz. The program can be listened to in its entirety below.
Steve Hussman, Director of Special Collections introduces the program and panelists.
Patricia Preciado Martin and Natalie Diaz talking to attendees of the program.
From the UA News Service:
“Denise Chávez, Natalie Díaz and Patricia Preciado Martin are three celebrated authors whose novels, poems and oral histories provide unique perspectives and indigenous visions of the borderlands. Each of these writers will present samplings of their works that will broaden understanding of and appreciation for borderlands communities.
Natalie Diaz at the podium.
Patricia Preciado-Martin
Chávez, a native of Las Cruces, New Mexico is a novelist (“The Last of the Menu Girls,” “Loving Pedro Infante,” “The King and Queen of Comezon”), performance artist and bookseller whose award-winning works offer a portrayal of life in the U.S.-Mexico border region from a female, Mexican American perspective. Díaz, a native of Needles, California, grew up on the Fort Mohave Indian Reservation. She is a poet whose work “When My Brother Was an Aztec” has been awarded the Nimrod/Hardman Pablo Neruda Prize. Preciado Martin is a native Tucsonan, whose oral histories describe both urban and rural life in southwest Arizona as seen through the eyes of working class, Mexican American people”
1968: A Closer Look At Its Impact, featuring Guadalupe Castillo, Gregory McNamee, Ted Warmbrand and Barbea Williams.
October 2, 2018, Special Collections, The University of Arizona Libraries
From the UA News Service:
International and national issues hit home hard in 1968. The war in Vietnam escalated, the draft was in full swing and many cities and college campuses felt the political and racial tensions rising. Join us for a panel discussion with activists, teachers, musicians and writers who remember 1968 and explore topics including the arts, the conflicts and everyday life. Learn about the impact that “Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness” – Edward Abbey’s autobiographical work published in 1968 – had on this country and the broader world. Hear stories about what life was like in Tucson for women and people of color during this pivotal year. Remember some of the popular protest music with local troubadour Ted Warmbrand.
Panelists:
Guadalupe Castillo: Retired Chican@ Studies educator, community organizer and activist.
Ted Warmbrand: Music historian, folksinger, storyteller, activist, and concert promoter.
Barbea Williams: Dance educator, founder and director of the Barbea Williams Performing Company, adjunct lecturer in the UA School of Dance.
Gregory McNamee: Tucson based author and adjunct lecturer, Eller School of Management.
