Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 to October 15) is a time to recognize the history, contributions and culture of the Hispanic and Latinx community in the United States. During this month of national reflection, we are spotlighting some upcoming campus events, books, stories, art exhibitions and more that celebrate the impact of Hispanic and Latinx culture.
Wednesday, Sept. 14, 12 p.m.—¡Bienvenidos! Hispanic Longhorns Celebration
Join UT President Jay Hartzell, Hispanic and Latinx student organizations and staff to celebrate Hispanic culture and community across campus! The event will be held at the William C. Powers, Jr. Student Activity Center (WCP), room 2.412.
Thursday, Sept. 15, 12 p.m.—The New World Order of Casta Paintings
Learn more about the Casta Mexican art genre at this virtual event featuring Rosario I. Granados, curator of Painted Cloth; and Susan Deans-Smith, associate professor of history. This event is part of the Blanton Museum’s Curated Conversations series. Go here for more information.
Thursday, Sept. 15, 6 p.m.—Celebracion de Independencias
Join MACC at this university-wide event honoring the independence of all countries in Latin America. The festivities will include food, music, prizes and giveaways. Admission is free for you and a guest with UT ID. Go here for more information.
Thursday, Sept. 22, 5 p.m.—A Stitch in Time: Preserving 18th Century Textiles
Explore the history of fashion and ritual in Colonial Latin America at this virtual event featuring two textile conservators Laura García Vedrenne and Mónica Solórzano Gonzales. This event is part of the Blanton Museum’s Distinguished Visiting Speakers in the Art of the Spanish Americas series. Go here for more information.
Friday, Sept. 23, 7:30 p.m.—Live Performance: La Chica
University Unions presents a free live performance by La Chica. Hear music from her new album “La Loba.” Doors open at 7 p.m. at the Cactus Cafe. Go here for more information.
Saturday, Sept. 24, 7:30 p.m.—Makuyeika Colectivo Teatral: ‘Andares’
Texas Performing Arts presents a theater creation about the lives of indigenous youth in México, devised collectively through personal anecdotes, ancestral myths as well as traditional music and art forms. The event will be located at the McCullough Theater. Go here for ticket information.
Friday, Sept. 30, 12 p.m.—Hispanic Caribbean Ensemble
The Butler School of Music is hosting a Hispanic Caribbean Ensemble performance at the Norman Hackerman Building (NHB), 5th floor atrium. As part of the UT Neuroscience Music Memories series, the event will feature Afro-Cuban standards by Eddie Palmieri, Ray Barretto and Tito Puente.
Tuesday, Oct. 4, 3:30 p.m.—Producing Power and Change in the Texas and Hollywood Film Industries
As part of the Latino Media Arts and Studies Fall Speaker Series, Elizabeth Avellán, a Latina producer working in Hollywood, will discuss her commitment to telling Latina/o stories and to supporting diverse, emerging talent, which has made her an agent of change in the industry. The event will take place at the G.B. Dealey Center for New Media (DMC), room 5.208. Go here for more information.
Friday, Oct. 14, 11:30 a.m.—Longhorn Fiesta
Come celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with the university community at the annual Longhorn Fiesta! Join your Longhorn familia at the Main Mall to enjoy music, entertainment and snacks in celebration of Hispanic and Latinx culture. Get excited for the event by listening to this recap of last year’s fiesta.
Various Dates in October, 2 p.m.—Community Program: ‘Casta’
“Casta” is an intimate multi-lingual performance featuring music, puppetry and dance. These performances are in conjunction with the exhibition “Painted Cloth: Fashion and Ritual in Colonial Latin America” and produced by Salvage Vanguard Theater. Go here for more information.
Various Dates in October & September—LBJ School Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month
The LBJ School of Public Affairs is hosting several speaker events addressing topics of politics and public policy, immigration, civil rights advocacy and philanthropic leadership. Go here for more information.
Save the Date: Crossroads Symposium
Architectural history scholars are invited to attend the Crossroads Symposium to explore the histories of the built environment in the Americas and the global south. The event is slated for Feb. 17-18, 2023. Go here for more information. Deadline for papers submissions is Sept. 30.
Painted Cloth: Fashion and Ritual in Colonial Latin America
Stop by the Blanton Museum of Art to view the “Painted Cloth” exhibit to learn more about the social roles of textiles and their visual representations in media produced in Bolivia, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela in the 1600s and 1700s. The exhibit will be on display until Jan. 8, 2023. Go here to learn about the series of special events related to the exhibition.
Arte Texas Presents: La Lucha Sigue Eastside Stories
The Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center presents the La Lucha Sigue exhibit, honoring East Austin artists and activists who have fought the lucha through battles in the community. This exhibit is the expression of East Austin Cultura. It displays passion, pain, knowledge, sweat, decades of hard work and our history. Go here for more information.
UT Joins Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities
With a goal to increase opportunity for those historically underserved by higher education, The University of Texas at Austin and 19 of the nation’s top research universities will form the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities. Go here to read the full story.
Two College of Liberal Arts Professors Earn Grant for ‘Refusing to Forget’ Project
John Morán González and Monica Muñoz Martinez, professors in the College of Liberal Arts, recently received an American History Association grant for their interdisciplinary project titled “Refusing to Forget.” Created in 2014 by a group of professors, the project commemorates the centennial of a period of anti-Mexican violence along the Texas-Mexico border. Go here to read the full story.
CMAS Director Joins Smithsonian’s American Latino Scholarly Committee
Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez, director of the Center for Mexican American Studies (CMAS), has been selected for the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino Scholarly Committee. As part of the 18-member committee, Rivas-Rodriguez will help guide the museum’s efforts in advancing the representation, understanding and appreciation of Latino history and culture in the United States. Go here to read the full story.
The Pilgrimage of Professor Latinx
Visit Life & Letters magazine to read about Frederick Luis Aldama, professor of English and academic superhero known as “Professor Latinx.” He has written and edited multiple books on comics, curated exhibitions, launched comic and academic publishing imprints, written his own comics, and become the scholarly avatar of Latino comics in the English-speaking world. He has also been recently inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters.
Giving Back to the Future
Read about a UT Austin alum Mario Espinoza (MPAff/MBA ’87) who is supporting scholarships for student-athletes and for Hispanic undergraduate and graduate students through the Texas Exes. He intends for his gifts to fill financial gaps, like those he had as a first-generation college student.
Twenty Years of Excellence in Journalism
Journalists from around the world recently came to UT Austin to celebrate the Knight Center’s 20-year anniversary. Since 2003, the Knight Center has provided online learning courses in English, Spanish, Portuguese and French to help journalists use technology in new ways.
Lessons in Brotherhood and Leadership
For the first time in two years, Project MALES (Mentoring to Achieve Latino Educational Success) hosted its big in-person Texas Male Student Leadership Summit on the UT Austin campus last August, bringing students, administrators, educators and researchers from schools across the state for two days of learning and networking. Read the photo recap story.
Destination Mexico City
Last spring, a group of students participating in Project MALES’ study abroad program journeyed south of the border for a month of learning and exploration in Mexico City and surrounding areas. View some photo highlights from their day-trips to historic sites and landmarks. You can also hear more about the trip in this podcast featuring Project MALES leaders Victor Saenz and Emmet Campos.
The Cognitive Impact of Discrimination
Black and Latino people experience higher rates of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias than non-Hispanic white people, but scientists have never known why. Now a new study from the College of Natural Sciences shows that experiences with discrimination may be playing a role in disproportionate experiences of cognitive decline. Read the full story.
Voces Oral Histories
For every day during Hispanic Heritage Month, the Voces Oral History Center has produced daily short narrations of a person or event that has significance for Texas Latinos. The narrations will run on KUT and other NPR stations statewide. In addition, each Friday during Hispanic Heritage Month, Texas Standard, the NPR radio program, will run a four-minute feature created by Voces. Stay tuned to 90.5 FM or livestream at KUT.org to hear more. Segments will also be posted on the Voces Heritage Month website after they run on KUT.
‘The Mexican American Experience in Texas’
Authored by Anthropology Professor Martha Menchaca “The Mexican American Experience in Texas” (UT Press, Jan. ’22) delves into the history of political oppression and exclusion of Mexican Americans in Texas. Through a detailed exploration of this long battle for equality, this book illuminates critical moments of both struggle and triumph in the Mexican American experience.
‘Decolonizing the Spatial History of the Americas’
Edited by School of Architecture Professor Fernando Lara, “Decolonizing the Spatial History of the Americas” (Center for American Architecture and Design, Sept. ’21) features a series of essays by scholars from around the world that address the need to decolonize architectural history and, rather than relying on Western/European frameworks, suggests that we develop new “American” concepts and frameworks for understanding the built environment of the Americas.
Visit the Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection database to find more books and research materials on Hispanic and Latinx history and culture.