Texas Border Business
McAllen, TEXAS – The National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies – Tejas Conference is back at South Texas College for 2020 and will take place from March 5 through March 7.
Opening plenary, presented by University of California – Irvine School of Law lecturer Dr. Rachel Moran, will take place on Thursday, March 5th, while a majority of the speakers and panelists will present over the course of Friday and Saturday.
The event is sponsored by the Department of History and the Mexican American Studies program at South Texas College. History professor and event coordinator Trinidad Gonzales explained some of the many reasons this region is important and influential on the Latin American culture.
“The Valley historically has been an important region within the development of Mexican American and Latino Civil Rights, culture, education, scholarship,” Gonzalez said. “So, when you look at the number of PHDs and lawyers and doctors in the United States, the two predominant regions where they come from is going to be from New Mexico and our region, South Texas.”
One of the first events of the weekend session is ’20 Years of Latina’s on the Bench in Hidalgo County’ with four local judges in attendance.
The events and panels are catered to the concerns and needs of the Rio Grande Valley and other border communities.
Sessions with titles like ‘The Impact and Need for Ethnic Studies in Our Public Schools’ and ‘Engaging a Decolonial Framework in the Continued Evolution of the Mexican American Studies Teachers Academy’ show a concerted effort to push for better education in culture and history pertaining to Mexican-Americans.
Talks such as ‘Space, Coalitions and Bodies; The politics of space, race and HIV/AIDS’ shows that hard-hitting topics in the health sector will also be addressed. Talks to address Law Enforcement and Heritage Language Speaking will be held.
Gonzales said that making this event accessible to the general public is important.
“First and foremost, it’s free,” Gonzales said. “There’s no charge for anybody to go. The only instance where you have a charge is if you wish to attend the awards luncheon.”
For more information contact Trinidad Gonzales at (956) 872-3513 or via email at tgonzale@southtexascollege.edu.
WHO: National Association for Chicana and Chicago Studies – Tejas
WHAT: Annual Conference WHEN: March 5-7
WHERE: South Texas College – Pecan Campus Student Union Ballroom
WHY: To share knowledge about Mexican American Studies and educate the community about a variety of topics led by panelists of students, professors and community members.
