Latinx Visions

As we gear up for fall registration, we wanted to highlight some of the many reasons that students at Baruch College choose to study Black and Latinx Studies. This episode is divided in two conversations: the first with BLS major Kaitlyn Moran and LTS minor Isai Ajpacaja, and the second with BLS minor Derek Fernandez. The students share what led them to taking classes in the BLS Department, some stand out moments from their favorite courses, and why they believe that other students should take a course or two (or ten!).    Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon

En este episodio entrevistamos a la académica e investigadora cultural, Bárbara Abadía-Rexach. Abadía-Rexach es una mujer negra puertorriqueña, antropóloga activista, afrofeminista y líder antirracista. Recibió un bachillerato en Comunicación Pública, una maestría en Teoría e Investigación de la Comunicación de la Universidad de Puerto Rico y un doctorado en Antropología de la Universidad de Texas en Austin.  Es profesora en el Departamento de Estudios Latinos/as de la Universidad Estatal de San Francisco donde sus clases se enfocan en las afrolatinidades. Sus investigaciones académicas exploran los procesos de racialización en diferentes movimientos culturales en Puerto Rico y sus diásporas. También es autora del libro Musicalizando la raza: Racialización en Puerto Rico a través de la música (2012) y Afro Feminista: Raza y Mujer en Puerto Rico (2025). Es miembro de los colectivos Ilé y Black Latinas Know. Abadía-Rexach co-produce y co-modera el programa radial NEGRAS en la Cadena Radio Universidad de Puerto Rico.   Sigue el podcast: Bluesky y Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon    

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides. Welcome back everyone!   Esta temporada 10 nace de la recepción positiva que han tenido nuestros episodios de entrevistas, espacios que se han convertido en un eje central del podcast. Conversaciones que documentan trayectorias y nos permiten pensar colectivamente el presente. Desde ahí reafirmamos una de nuestras apuestas principales: amplificar voces y proyectos más allá del nuestro. Crear un espacio de diálogo y resonancia. Un espacio para escuchar cómo se está pensando y produciendo cultura hoy. En esta ocasión, decidimos articular esas entrevistas bajo una rúbrica común: la puertorriqueñidad. No como una categoría fija ni esencialista, sino como un campo en disputa, móvil y diverso. A través de estas conversaciones, buscamos mostrar la variedad de posturas, lenguajes y proyectos contemporáneos que se están gestando tanto en el archipiélago como en la diáspora. Desde prácticas artísticas y culturales hasta intervenciones comunitarias, académicas, y políticas. “Puertorriqueñas” nombra, entonces, una pluralidad: maneras distintas de habitar la isla y el afuera; de imaginar pertenencias; de resistir, crear y sostener vida en contextos marcados por el colonialismo estadounidense, el desplazamiento, la precariedad y también por una enorme potencia creativa.   Siga el podcast: Bluesky y Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon

Today we bring you a conversation with Julio Anta and Jacoby Salcedo, the duo behind the fantastic YA graphic novel, Frontera. This interview took place on October 15, 2025, via Zoom. Before we begin the interview, we share a bit of background on both Anta and Salcedo as well as about the graphic novel we are focusing on today. After the conversation with the author and artist, we share our thoughts on the conversation, the book as a whole, and our season’s broader focus on border stories. Julio's Information: Website: https://www.julioanta.com/ Instagram: @julioanta Jacoby's Information: Website: https://www.jacobysalcedoart.com/ Instagram: @jacobysalcedo Transcript Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon

This month we wanted to shine a spotlight on the Black and Latino Studies Department at Baruch College! In this conversation with BLS minors Ashanti Charon and Michelle Estrada and BLS major Sam Quervalu, the students share their reasons for choosing to study in our department and encourage students who might be curious to sign up for a class and learn for themselves what it's all about!   Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon   Transcript  

In this episode, we look at at children’s picture books and discuss the importance of border stories for children (and adults) of all ages. In the main section we explore two specific titles, Mama’s Nightingale, by Edwidge Danticat and Bright Star by Yuyi Morales. Both of these children’s picture books approach telling border stories in distinct ways that are age appropriate without erasing the importance of teaching children about the borderlands. And in the final section, we briefly discuss the ways in which the authors utilize intertextuality and "multi-texture-ality" to tell these stories. Then we wrap up with some additional recommendations. Transcript Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon  

Welcome to season NINE of Latinx Visions. This season the “hilo” connecting our episodes will be The Border (or Borders, plural).  We’re centering Latinx voices—artists, researchers, storytellers—who are offering counter-narratives. Perspectives that resist the flat, racist tropes dominating headlines. We’ll highlight works that humanize migrants, that complicate the story, that insist on dignity over dehumanization. Above all, our goal this season is to remind listeners that the border is not a “problem” to be solved. It’s a human reality to be reckoned with, one shaped by histories of colonialism and one still infused with possibility—stories of survival, resistance, and creativity that deserve to be heard. In our first episode, we provide you with some background information on the film Who’s Dayani Cristal?  including who made it, what the goal of the film is, and how it approaches telling the story of one man who can no longer speak for himself.  Then we dive into our main topics: Rojo starts off by exploring the parallels between the film and Francisco Cantú’s memoir The Line Becomes a River and Rebecca discusses whose story gets told and how it gets told. In our connections segment, Rojo considers the music in the film and Rebecca talks about other migration narratives and how they approach telling these border stories. In this episode we mentioned a number of books, songs, and videos. If you're interested in learning more check out any of the sources listed below:  Books The Line Becomes a River, Francisco Cantú   A People’s History of Latin America, Hernan Horna Solito, Javier Zamora Unaccompanied, by Javier Zamora The Devil’s Highway, by Luis Alberto Urrea Harvest of Empire, by Juan Gonzalez (also a documentary film) Songs Calle 13’s “Latinoamérica Yasiin Bey—Mos Def—with “No hay nada más Leonard Cohen’s “The Partisan" Videos on YouTube “Who Is Dayani Cristal?: Gael Garcia Bernal Traces Path of Migrant Worker Who Died in Arizona Desert,” - Democracy Now “Gael Garcia Bernal on 'Who is Dayani Cristal?': Sundance Film Festival” - Los Angeles Times   Transcript   Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Ashanti Charon   

In this episode, we wrap up our season on Latinx Cultural Politics with a conversation by, and interview with, Cuban-American Graphic Artist, Edel Rodriguez. We are also joined by our colleague and professor of English, Dr. Jennifer Caroccio-Maldonado. To start the episode, we provide a bit of background on Rodriguez and his career along with an overview of his graphic memoir, Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey. Then we turn to a presentation made by Rodriguez on March 27th, 2025, at Baruch College during the Harman Writer-in-Residence spring semester event. This talk was recorded in front of a live audience and was originally accompanied by a visual presentation that Rodriguez references multiple times. We highly recommend following along with this presentation if you are able, as he shares images of his work not only from his memoir, but from magazine covers, social media, and more. He also shows the audience family photos he was able to recover as part of the research process for writing his memoir.  Next, we include a brief interview with Rodriguez conducted by Jennifer and Rebecca about the process of creating a graphic memoir and the approaches he took to telling his story in a way that was meaningful to him. And in the final segment from March 27th, we have included a selection of audience questions along with Rodriguez’s answers that we found insightful.  To wrap up the episode, we will share our reflections on the presentation and interview. Presentation Slides (Note: Google may tell you this file is too large to scan for viruses, but we have opened it on our own computers and it is safe, it's just very large and must be downloaded first!)   Transcirpts  Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Jasmine Mojica

In this episode, we continue our focus on Latinx Cultural Politics by conversing with artist and teatrero Miguel Trelles from Teatro LATEA. This episode includes background on LATEA and Miguel as well as an interview that was recorded in front of a live audience at El Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center on March 7, 2025. After the interview, we return to share our reflections on the conversation with Miguel and his engagement with the audience who also asked him questions. This conversation was part of "Speaking Volumes: A Symposium on Sound & Listening," hosted by two of our colleagues from Baruch College, Victor Sierra Matute and Camila Torres Castro, and sponsored by LATEA and El Clemente and we appreciate the invitation to join in the conversation and contribute with our interview of Miguel. Transcript Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording: Jacob Garces Marques Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Jasmine Mojica    

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides! Welcome to season 8 of Latinx Visions. Our theme for this semester is Latinx Cultural Politics and we will be bringing you three episodes in which we will be in conversation with academics, visual artists, and authors to discuss the many ways in which they engage in cultural politics. Cultural politics examines how power, identity, and social struggles are negotiated through cultural expressions, including art, media, language, and everyday practices. It explores how representation shapes social realities, how dominant ideologies maintain hegemony, and how marginalized communities resist through alternative narratives and artistic forms. Cultural politics intersects with race, class, gender, and sexuality. It reveals how cultural production both upholds and challenges systems of oppression. It also considers the role of aesthetic and political practices in shaping social movements and how globalization and transnationalism influence cultural exchanges and diasporic identities.   In this episode,  interview Arlene Davila and Yasmin Ramirez, editors of the recently published book, Nuyorican and Diasporican Visual Art. This interview was recorded via Zoom on Friday, February 28th, 2025. After the interview, we share our reflections on the conversation with Arlene and Yasmin. Latinx Visions in conversation with Joseph Caceres Buy Nuyorican and Diasporican Visual Art Book and Artist Conversation at the Latinx Project Latinx Project Auction Transcript  Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Jasmine Mojica

Bienvenidos, bienvenidas, bienvenides. If you have been listening for a while, you might know that we usually release student work between semesters. We released three episodes during January and the final two will be released in February. These episodes were fully created by the students in Rebecca's fall 2024 Survey of Caribbean Literature course. The students worked together in groups throughout the semester to create podcast episodes that reflected the literature, themes, and concepts we covered in the class. They researched the ideas that interested them the most and analyzed different forms of literature from the Caribbean including novels, short stories, poetry, songs, and film. They learned how to record, edit, and produce a podcast project that they could be proud of putting out into the world.  Please let them know how you feel about their work by listening and sharing this episode. Give them a shout out on social media by tagging Latinx Visions on Instagram and BlueSky. This episode was written, recorded, edited, and produced by Grace Ayodele, Thomas Ellenson, Elizabeth Gonzalez, Sovereign Mack, Clarisa Martinez, and Lesly Ramirez Melchor.   Transcript Bibliography   Songs analyzed in this episode include: Una Velita, Bad Bunny Sin Aire, Rafa Pabón El Niágara en Bicicleta, Juan Luis Guerra Preciosa, Marc Anthony Africa Must Wake Up, Nas and Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley  

Bienvenidos, bienvenidas, bienvenides. If you have been listening for a while, you might know that we usually release student work between semesters. We released three episodes during January and the final two will be released in February. These episodes were fully created by the students in Rebecca's fall 2024 Survey of Caribbean Literature course. The students worked together in groups throughout the semester to create podcast episodes that reflected the literature, themes, and concepts we covered in the class. They researched the ideas that interested them the most and analyzed different forms of literature from the Caribbean including novels, short stories, poetry, songs, and film. They learned how to record, edit, and produce a podcast project that they could be proud of putting out into the world.  Please let them know how you feel about their work by listening and sharing this episode. Give them a shout out on social media by tagging Latinx Visions on Instagram and BlueSky. This episode was written, recorded, edited, and produced by Nathalie Cabrera, Delina Forde, Kavon James, Nayhla Nazon, Marlon Ottley, and Ona Vassallo.   Transcript Bibliography

Bienvenidos, bienvenidas, bienvenides. If you have been listening for a while, you might know that we usually release student work between semesters. This time we will be releasing one episode a week throughout January. These episodes were fully created by the students in Rebecca's fall 2024 Survey of Caribbean Literature course. The students worked together in groups throughout the semester to create podcast episodes that reflected the literature, themes, and concepts we covered in the class. They researched the ideas that interested them the most and analyzed different forms of literature from the Caribbean including novels, short stories, poetry, songs, and film. They learned how to record, edit, and produce a podcast project that they could be proud of putting out into the world.  Please let them know how you feel about their work by listening and sharing this episode. Give them a shout out on social media by tagging Latinx Visions on Instagram and BlueSky.   This episode was written, recorded, edited, and produced by Jeau Alvarez, Angelique Cespedes, Steven Fabiani, George Kusi, Julian Martinez-Ariza, and Lily Petak. Transcript Bibliography

Bienvenidos, bienvenidas, bienvenides. If you have been listening for a while, you might know that we usually release student work between semesters. This time we will be releasing one episode a week throughout January. These episodes were fully created by the students in Rebecca's fall 2024 Survey of Caribbean Literature course. The students worked together in groups throughout the semester to create podcast episodes that reflected the literature, themes, and concepts we covered in the class. They researched the ideas that interested them the most and analyzed different forms of literature from the Caribbean including novels, short stories, poetry, songs, and film. They learned how to record, edit, and produce a podcast project that they could be proud of putting out into the world.  Please let them know how you feel about their work by listening and sharing this episode. Give them a shout out on social media by tagging Latinx Visions on Instagram and BlueSky.   This episode was written, recorded, edited, and produced by Grace Ayodele, Shania Clark, Juliemarie Hernandez, Bianca Peterkin, Ariana Purisic, and Leticia Rodriguez Transcript Bibliography

Bienvenidos, bienvenidas, bienvenides. If you have been listening for a while, you might know that we usually release student work between semesters. This time we will be releasing one episode a week throughout January. These episodes were fully created by the students in Rebecca's fall 2024 Survey of Caribbean Literature course. The students worked together in groups throughout the semester to create podcast episodes that reflected the literature, themes, and concepts we covered in the class. They researched the ideas that interested them the most and analyzed different forms of literature from the Caribbean including novels, short stories, poetry, songs, and film. They learned how to record, edit, and produce a podcast project that they could be proud of putting out into the world.  Please let them know how you feel about their work by listening and sharing this episode. Give them a shout out on social media by tagging Latinx Visions on Instagram and BlueSky.   This episode was written, recorded, edited, and produced by Mercy Colon, Daniela Diaz, Imani Gonzalez, Yael Leon, Julia Shi, and Daniela Zoquier. Sound Consultant and Mixing by Shawn P. Russell Transcript Bibliography    

Para este episodio que cierra nuestra temporada número 7 sobre narrativas especulativas hemos invitado a Dr. Enrique González Conty. Enrique es profesor de español y cine en Ithaca College y buen amigo de Rojo. En este episodio abordaremos la película del 2008 Sleep Dealer dirigida por Alex Rivera con las actuaciones de Luis Fernando Peña como Memo Cruz, Leonor Varela como Luz Martinez, y Jacob Vargas como Rudy Ramirez. Enrique hablará sobre la militarización de la frontera y el uso de la tecnología para ello. Rebecca examinará el trabajo virtual de los migrantes en los Estados Unidos y yo, Rojo, discutiré el modelo de escritura neurológica en las redes que presenta la película. Transcript Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Jasmine Mojica

In this episode we discuss the graphic novel Low, Low Woods. First, we provide a synopsis of the book along with brief introductions of its authors: Carmen Maria Machado and artist Dani. In the context of this graphic novel, Rojo conducts an ecological and feminist analysis of body horror, with particular attention to the different meanings and representations of sinkholes. Rebecca then focuses on gaslighting as a form of psychological abuse and considers how one of the protagonists, Vee, engages in what might be considered self-gaslighting, as a form of self-preservation, but also how water serves as a symbol for gaslighting from the men of the town.   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions   Transcript ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media and Transcripts: Jasmine Mojica

Today, we are in conversation with Alana Casanova-Burgess, co-creator, host, and producer of WNYC Studios’ La Brega: Stories from the Puerto Rican Experience.  This conversation was recorded on May 2nd, 2024 in front of a live audience of our students and colleagues and it was sponsored by The Harman Program at Baruch College. Special thanks to Esther Allen and Elena Martínez for organizing the event and inviting us to participate. At the beginning, the conversation focuses on Casanova-Burguess’s podcast. Then, it explores the speculative sci-fi episode “The Moon’s Distance/La Distancia de la Luna” from the second season of La Brega, co-written with the Puerto Rican writer, editor and scholar Sergio Gutiérrez Negrón. We also feature a guest co-host this month, our colleague, Dr. Harold Ramdass, a Lecturer in the English Department here at Baruch and Rojo's co-instructor for the Feit Interdisciplinary Seminar course Performing the Caribbean, which they taught during the spring 2024 semester. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois Social Media: Jasmine Mojica

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides! Welcome back to season 7 of the podcast! This season our focus is on speculative narratives.  In this episode, we start by defining speculative fiction and speculative narratives. Then, we share some background information on each of the authors and collections of short stories we are analyzing today. During the main segment of the episode, Rojo explores how Chilean writer Roberto Bolaño uses the speculative genre to unpack and critique the influence of fascism en las Américas and Rebecca considers the ways in which monster stories can be re-written as a tool for women’s empowerment. And as we have done in past seasons, we wrap up with a section in which we connect the short story choices we have made to one another.  Transcript   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides! Welcome back everyone. As mentioned in the previous student episode from July, today we will be sharing a bonus episode from New York Comic Con in 2023.  The panel took place on Thursday, October 12th, 2023 and was titled, “Comics in College, Pop-Culture Pedagogy, and Fandom Final Projects.” Participants included professors Asif Saddiqi, Jennifer Caroccio Maldonado, Michelle Crowley, and your Latinx Visions co-host, Rebecca Salois. Panel Slides

In this episode we feature student projects by LTS 1003 students Jasmin Reyes and Jose Perez, and LTS 3012 student Ashanti Charon.   First is Jasmin’s episode on Gender-based violence in Haiti. She sheds light on some of the different forms of gender based violence in the country and addresses topics including intimate partner violence, violence after the 2010 earthquake and more. Next, Ashanti discusses the prevalence of sexism within Hispanic folklore and the role of women in Latinx monster stories. She considers why women are more frequently portrayed as monstrous in these stories then are their male counterparts.  Finally, Jose looks into the relationship between the US and Cuba and the effects of the US trade embargo on the island, specifically as they relate to Cuba’s economy, and the impact on Cubans during the Special Period after the collapse of the USSR. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides. Welcome back, everyone! Today, we are in conversation with Olivia Juarez and Val Z. Schull from GreenLatinos. GreenLatinos is a national non-profit organization that brings together Latine leaders committed to addressing environmental and conservation issues that affect the well-being of Latine communities in the US. This interview was recorded on Friday, April 5th, via Zoom. Before the interview, we will share some background information on GreenLatinos, including the organization’s vision and mission, and brief bios on our two guests. After the interview, we will return to share our thoughts and key takeaways from the conversation. Here are some links related to the information shared in the episode: Prescribed fire practices in Yosemite Azul 2022 US Latinos and the Ocean Poll Banda and Mazatlan Colaborativo40 Justicia y Equidad fund GreenLatinos Urban Greening Initiative Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode, we are joined by scholar and activist, Dr. Jennifer Martinez-Medina. We recorded this conversation on Friday March 22nd, 2024 over Zoom. Dr. Martinez-Medina is an Assistant Professor of Politics, Policy, Law and Ethics at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. Our discussion touches on various aspects of her research and work, with a focus on the effects of the climate crisis on farm workers in Oregon. Before the interview, we will share a bit of background on Dr. Martinez-Medina, her research, her public works, and the ways in which she engages in both simultaneously. After the interview has concluded, we will be back to share our thoughts and key takeaways from the conversation. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Bienvenidas, bienvenidos, bienvenides, al segundo episodio de la sexta temporada centrada en el activismo climático. Hoy presentamos otro episodio en español, esta vez con un enfoque en la literatura y poéticas que se concentran en temas climáticos. Iniciaremos el episodio introduciendo a nuestro invitado, Xavier Valcarcel. Compartiremos algunos datos biográficos para darles una idea de su trabajo. Después daremos paso a la entrevista que tuvo lugar el 9 de febrero de este año, 2024, por Zoom. Terminaremos, como siempre, con nuestras reflexiones sobre la conversación. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Today we begin our sixth season of Latinx Visions. This semester we are considering Latinx Climate Activism and are speaking with different individuals and organizations about the connections between culture, community, and climate. We are speaking with writers, creators, and activists on how they engage with and bring attention to the climate crisis.   In this episode, we share a conversation we had with Afro-Latino writer and podcaster, Anthony Otero on Friday, February 2nd, 2024. Otero joined us at Baruch for an in-person conversation about his short-form comic publications and how they connect to the concept of climate activism. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this special student episode, we feature projects by LTS 1003 students Samantha Lopez, Zittlali Tepezila Bonilla, and Fareha Othiye. First we hear from Samantha who considers the many different labels used by people of Latin American descent in the United States. She discusses the popularity of these terms, the generational expectations surrounding these terms, and the general awareness of words like Latinx within Latin American communities recognizing that there is no “one-size-fits-all” label. This is followed by Zittlali and Fareha’s conversation about the Mexican education system. In particular, they look at the overall structure of education in Mexico compared with the United States and some of the many issues affecting students in Mexico, especially as it relates to resources and accessibility for students of all socio-economic backgrounds.   Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Today we have a conversation with scholar and cultural activist, Dr. Lizbeth De la Cruz Santana, who also just happens to be our newest Baruch College, Black and Latino Studies colleague. We recorded this interview in person on October 28th, 2023 at Baruch College. In previous seasons we have spoken with Dr. Keisha Allan and PhD Candidate Joseph Caceres, who are also BLS colleagues, and we hope to be able to speak with other colleagues going forward.  Before diving into the interview itself, we provide information on De la Cruz Santana’s scholarship, activism, and other projects broadly speaking. And then we share her more in-depth perspectives with you all. After the interview has concluded, we think back on the conversation with our guest. Follow Lizbeth De La Cruz Santana @lizbethdsantana on all platforms or check out her linktree: https://linktr.ee/Lizbethdsantana to discover more on the projects she's involved in. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Today we have a conversation with poet, storyteller, and essayist Roberto Carlos Garcia that we are excited to share with you. This interview took place on October 7, 2023, via Zoom. In a sense, this is a follow up to the season 2 episode, Afro-Latinidad and Literature: Afro-Latinx Poetry in which, along with We Are Owed by Ariana Brown and Love is Hard Work by Miguel Algarín, we discussed García’s poetry collection black/Maybe: An Afro Lyric. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to that episode yet, we recommend going and checking it out after you’re finished with this episode. Before we start the interview, we will include a bit of background on Garcia including his education, publications, awards, and other projects. Finally, we wrap up the episode with our thoughts on the conversation along with some personal recommendations of specific poems from Garcia’s anthology collection What Can I Tell You? Roberto's website: https://www.robertocarlosgarcia.com/ Get Fresh Books Publishing: https://gfbpublishing.org/ Transcript   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois  

Hoy presentamos otro episodio en español tal como hicimos en la temporada pasada. Nuestro plan es seguir produciendo, por lo menos, un episodio en español cada semestre. Iniciamos el episodio introduciendo a nuestra invitada, Natalia Lassalle-Morillo. Compartimos algunos datos sobre ella como contexto, incluyendo sus intereses particulares y metodologías artísticas. Después damos paso a la entrevista con ella que tuvo lugar el 25 de septiembre de este año, 2023, por Zoom. Terminamos con nuestros pensamientos sobre la conversación.   Se puede encontrar información sobre Lasalle-Morillo en su sitio web: http://natalialassallemorillo.com  También aquí está la información sobre la exhibición que viene en 2024 en Amant: Natalia Lassalle-Morillo, En Parábola: Conversations on Tragedy Transcript  

Bienvenidas, Bienvenidos, Bienvenides!  Our fifth season is dedicated to celebrating the voices, stories, and experiences of Latinx people. Our aim is to offer space for conversation, to register the nuances and complexities within the Latinx overlapping diasporas, recognizing that there is no singular narrative but instead an array of voices that deserve to be heard.   In this episoe we discuss with author and scholar Dr. Amina Gautier from our Afro-Latinidades series at Baruch. This conversation was recorded on November 30, 2022, with support from the Black and Latino Studies Department and BRESI (the Black, Race, and Ethnic Studies Initiative). This was a conversation between the author and student leaders in my then Special Topic Class: Afro-Latinidades (the class is now part of the BLS course offering). Shout out to Sandy Paulino, Yuddy Fermin, Jonas Reyes, and Isabella Bonilla for developing the questions based on our class discussions. This student-centered course examined African-descended populations in Latin America and Afro-Latinxs in the United States. Throughout the semester, we explored questions of Black identity and representation, colonialism, resistance to slavery and its afterlives, transnationalism, Pan-Africanism, and diaspora.    We first introduce Dr. Gautier and provide some background on her. This is followed with a partial reading of one of her short stories, “Feliz Navidad.” After this, we share the questions originally posed by the students, editing and paraphrasing for conciseness. We then wrap up with some story recommendations within Dr. Gautier’s book Now We Will Be Happy and a brief conversation about how her work resonates thematically with our classes and the podcast itself.   Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Bonus Episode: Audio from the 2022 New York Comic Con panel, "Pop-Culture, Fandom, and Comics in the College Classroom" featuring Heidi Bollinger, Jennifer Caroccio Maldonado, Tanya Cook, Rebecca L. Salois, and Asif Siddiqi. In this panel, we shared how we incorporate pop-culture into our own courses and how you might do the same - whether you are a professor or a student! From Taylor Swift to Game of Thrones, Supernatural, Marvel, DC, and more we discussed the validity of pop-culture in the college classroom.  

In this episode, we feature projects by LTS 1003 students Leah Garcia and Kevin Lopez, LTS 3100 student Nelson Tavares, and LTS 3012 Student Tatiana Perez. First up will be Leah and Kevin’s episode which considers Latino representation in television and film. They argue that the Latino stereotypes we see on TV misrepresent the community as a whole by perpetuating harmful and inaccurate generalizations, which lead to discriminatory treatment of them in society. This will be followed by Nelson Tavares’s interview with his wife, Sabrina about her experiences with cultural assimilation as a Dominican American woman. He draws parallels between these experiences and “Abuela’s Greatest Gift”  by Janel Martinez and Harvest of Empire by Juan Gonzalez.  Finally we will wrap up with an episode by Tatiana Perez, who explores the topic of Latina owned small businesses in the US. Tatiana looks at the ways in which these businesses can help strengthen communities and build intergenerational wealth. Transcript Follow the podcast: Bluesky and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Welcome to the finale of season 4! This week we speak with writer, scholar, and PhD candidate Joseph Caceres about his work with archives of the Nuyorican Poets' Cafe's last surviving founders, Lois Elaine Griffith. After our interview, stay tuned for a brief discussion about our own experiences with conducting archival research and recommendations for New York City archives and online digital archives. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

**This episode is part of the Black and Latinx Studies Department 2022-2023 Afro-Latinidades Series sponsored by BRESI.**   Este episodio es completamente en español./This episode is completely in Spanish. En este episodio hablamos con Helen Ceballos. Helen es una artista multi-trans-inter-disciplinaria nacida en la República Dominicana que estudió en la Universidad de Puerto Rico y la Universidad Nacional de las Artes en Buenos Aires, Argentina. Ella estableció “Mezcolanza” en 2013, una plataforma cultural para artistas estadounidenses, latinoamericanos y caribeños, y es la directora de Plataforma Eje, una organización que promueve proyectos culturales y comunitarios. Helen usa su propio cuerpo en sus obras para destacar la identidad caribeña y su experiencia con la diáspora y lo erótico. Ella también explora los efectos de la migración y los desastres naturales. Para ella, su arte es personal y su fotografía intenta mostrar el poder de la comunidad, especialmente en y junto a grupos racializados y marginalizados. Transcript   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode we discuss two plays written by Dolores Prida, Coser y Cantar and Botánica. We provide some background on the author and how her works embody many of the themes and concepts we see in other Latinx playwrights from New York City. Rojo looks at Coser y Cantar and the role of NYC as an interior scape and a bilingual city, as well as through the lens of media and culture. Then Rebecca considers the "transcultural pendulum" that the the main character Milagros experiences in Botánica along with the symbolism of the buffalos in this play. Finally, as usual, we wrap up with a couple of additional recommendations for Latinx theater by NY playwrights.   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Welcome to episode two of our fourth seasons of Latinx Visions. In this episode we discuss the novel Bodega Dreams by Ernesto Quiñonez, which was published in 2000. Rojo proposes three entryways into Bodega Dreams, a novel that goes deep into the idea of Nuyorican empowerment highlighting the importance of personal determination, cultural pride, and political engagement in creating a just and equitable society. And Rebecca discusses neoliberalism and its effects on the character of Willie Bodega and on El Barrio as a whole. Finally, we wrap up our episode with a couple of recommendations for novels by Latinx authors that take place in New York City.    Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Bienvenidos, Bienvenidas, Bienvenides. Welcome to season 4 of Latinx Visions. This season we will be focusing on Latinx New York City. New York City has a significant Latinx population, with over 2.2 million people identifying as Hispanic or Latino in the city as of 2020. This diverse group is made up of migrants, immigrants, and descendants from a variety of countries, including the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Ecuador to name just the biggest groups in terms of population. The Latinx community in NYC is concentrated in boroughs like The Bronx and in neighborhoods, such as Washington Heights, El Barrio or East Harlem, and Los Sures or South Williamsburg. In this episode, we discuss the ABC television series Ugly Betty, which starrs America Ferrera, and the film Raising Victor Vargas, a 2002 Latinx coming-of-age comedy film directed by Peter Sollett and co-written by him and Eva Vives.   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode we feature projects by LTS 3059 student John Avila, LTS 1003 students Daisy Ho and Jaydin Mohan, and LTS 3012 student Kevin Calixto.   John’s research focuses on family building and economic stability for Latinx workers. He uses the novel Chingada by Rigoberto Gonzalez and Estamos Aqui: Poems by Migrant Farm Workers to guide his discussion.  Daisy takes a different approach to her project and considers the implementation of the carbon tax in Chile. She discusses the effects of climate change in Latin America and the response to Chile being the first country in Latin America to enforce a carbon tax on corporations.  Jaydin dives into Latine stereotypes found in pop-culture. She speaks to the importance of breaking racial and ethnic stereotypes and dives into the history of Latinx representation throughout the 20th century and into the 21st century.  And to wrap up this week’s podcast episode, Kevin considers the influence of Latinas in film and the importance of diverse representation. In particular he considers the lack of Afro-Latina representation in the media and how that affects the ways in which audiences perceive latinidad.    Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode we feature projects by LTS 3012 students Edith Valerio, Roxanna Escamilla, and Nina Rodas and LTS 1003 student Michelle Kozinets. First we will hear from Edith who speaks about the struggles of being both a full time student and a full time worker. Edith herself identifies as both of these things and wanted to explore the effects of doing both on the mental, emotional, and physical health of students who are also full time employees.  This will be followed by Michelle’s exploration of mental health awareness and treatment for women in Latin America. She considers how physical issues such as gender-based violence and varying degrees of abortion access can lead to mental health issues.  The third segment features Roxanna Escamilla who discusses issues related to Latina body image. She investigates the struggles and pressure that Latinas face to live up to certain body image standards and the effects of the family and media on those insecurities.  We will wrap up this episode with Nina’s exploration of Latinas who do not speak Spanish. She argues that just because someone does not speak Spanish, it doesn’t make them any less Latina. She elaborates on some of the other ways in which people can participate in culture beyond language. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode we introduce you to two fantastic New York-based Puerto Rican playwrights who are at different stages of their careers: Javier Antonio González and Daniela Gonzalez y Perez. We were able to sit down with them and discuss their experiences as queer Boricua-Latinx creators and will be sharing our full conversation with them in this episode. After the conversation concludes, we will come back and provide you with a couple of queer Latinx plays or playwrights that you might wish to check out after you have looked into Javier and Daniela’s works. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

On Thursday October 20th, the Sidney Harman Writer-in-Residence Program held a reading and conversation with best-selling and award winning author Carmen Maria Machado and invited us to interview her as part of that event. This episode includes a brief background Machado, the author of In the Dream House, The Low, Low Woods, and Her Body and Other Stories along with numerous essays and short stories. Then we include an abridged version of the reading that Machado shared that evening called “The Tour.” This was recently published in McSweeney’s Magazine and will be included in Machado’s upcoming book project. This is followed by our interview with Machado in which we discuss Machado’s writing style, the appeal of the horror genre, collaborating with others, and writing queerness into her works. After our interview, there was a brief Q&A with audience members which we will include in the episode as well.  Finally, at the end of the episode we wrap up with a couple of recommendations for other LGBTQIA+ Latinx books we think are worth checking out.   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode, featuring Dr. Keisha Allan, we discuss Jean-Michel Baquiat, a Black American artist of Haitian and Puerto Rican ancestry who grew up in New York. We provide background on the artist and discuss a current (as of 2022) exhibition of his art, King Pleasure. Then we look at some of the connections he had with other artists and some of the theories related to his art. Most importantly, to the theme of our season on queer latinidades, we consider Basquiat through a queer lens. Finally we wrap up with some recommendations of other LGBTQIA+ Latinx artists. Dr. Keisha Allan recently joined the Black and Latinx Studies faculty with us at Baruch and we were thrilled to have her on the podcast. She is co-host of the podcast Conversations in Atlantic Theory which can be found wherever you get your podcasts. Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ZeVJKEE5aq4A6kJvb0A52 Apple Link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/conversations-in-atlantic-theory/id1611898947     Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode, Rebecca discusses the ways in which Love, Victor (2020-2022) provides a necessary and relatively positive (but sometimes overly safe) coming out/coming of age story for a gay Latino teen. Rojo considers the 2019 independent film The Garden Left Behind. This film follows Tina, a Mexican trans woman who moved to New York City when she was a child and as an adult lives with her grandmother, Eliana. Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions Transcript  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this week's Student Special we feature projects by LTS 1003 student Roxanna Escamilla, LTS 3100 student Diego Gonzalez, LTS 3085 students Matthew Queme and Emma Rose, and IDC 3001 students Tasia Muskan and Allyson Triana.  Roxanna’s research focuses on Latinx identities, in particular that feeling of living in between cultures and not feeling as though you truly belong as an American or as a Latino. She uses the character of Chris from the Netflix series Gentefied  to expand on this concept. Diego Gonzalez’s work considers the changes that have taken place over the last several decades to the New York neighborhoods of the Lower East Side and Washington Heights due to gentrification. He uses “The Obelisk of Loisaida” by Marcos Gonzalez and “The Ladder Up” by Carina de Valle Schorske as a jumping off point for this discussion.  This is followed by Matthew and Emma’s project which looks at the documentary, Clinica de migrantes by Maxim Pozdorovkin and the book chapter, “Ground Zero” from Karla Cornejo Villavicencio’s book, The Undocumented Americans to discuss the connection between healthcare and labor issues faced by undocumented Latin Americans on the east coast of the United States. The final segment, by Tasia and Allyson, also addresses Cornejo Villavicencio’s chapter “Ground Zero.” They will explore the struggles of exploitation faced by undocumented migrants during 9/11.   Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

Over the next two weeks we will be sharing podcast episodes that feature recordings our students created over the past year. In this episode we feature projects by LTS 3110 student Jacqueline Ortiz and LTS 1003 students Abigail Garcia Vazquez, Arleth Robles, and Nina Rodas First up is Jacqueline’s episode which considers, in her words, “blackness and whiteness and their role in creating and permeating through the Afro-diasporic ecology.” She analyzes Achille Membe’s book Critique of Black Reason and Arecelis Girmay’s essay “From Woe to Wonder” as part of her project. This is followed by Abigail, Arleth, and Nina’s study on La Regla de Ocha, or Santeria. In particular they discuss how this Afro-Caribbean religion is represented in the media by looking at the song Aguanile, and season 2, episode 7 of the show She’s Gotta Have It.   Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In this episode we bring you an interview we recorded with Black Latinas Know Collective scholar and member, Dr. Omaris Zamora. We provide a bit of background on the Collective and Dr. Zamora before we get into the interview itself. You will then hear our previously recorded interview with Omaris where we ask about her research and publications, her experiences with the Collective, and how the organization came to be. Finally, we wrap up with a few additional Afro-Latinx-centric groups and organizations that you might reach out to if you are looking for other ways in which to be involved in community activism that supports the Afro-Latinx communities throughout the country and the Americas. Transcript

In this episode we discuss Latinx and, more specifically, Afro-Latinx representation in comic books in general, share some examples of Afro-Latinx superheroes, and introduce the hero of this episode: Miles Morales, Spider-Man. Since this episode focuses on Afro-Latinx art, we then discuss the creation of Miles Morales as Spider-Man as a comic book figure as well as the storifying and geometrizing of his Afro-Latinidad. We’ll further the conversation with a brief discussion of the novelization of his story and an essay written about the importance of his Afro-Latinidad. Next we move on to the animated film featuring Miles Morales, Into the Spiderverse which was released in 2018. Here we consider the changes made to his story from the comic books and the ways in which the creators pushed boundaries in the world of animation. We wrap up the main segment of our episode with a brief chat about the 2020 video game, Miles Morales: Spider-Man and the art of the narrative in video games.  As usual, we close out with a few comic book and graphic novel recommendations as well as a handful of additional Latinx superheroes worth checking out. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In This Episode we introduce you to three poetry collections: Love Is Hard Work: Memorias de Loisaida, by Miguel Algarín, black/Maybe by Roberto Carlos Garcia, and We Are Owed., by Ariana Brown. In the main segment of our episode today we share a little bit of the history of the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and discuss Algarín’s role as one of its founding poets. Then we analyze Brown’s inclusion of Gaspar Yanga as a subject of some of her poems. After that we move on to discuss the Spanish casta system as seen by Garcia and systemic anti-blackness along with US imperialism in regards to how Blackness is perceived. This ties directly into our final topic on confronting anti-blackness and how these poets do so with their words. As usual, we will wrap up the episode with a few recommendations of literary works, both poetry and prose, by other Afro-Latinx authors. Nuyorican Poets Cafe Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

In the first episode of season two, we discuss both film and television. In particular we consider Afro-Latinx representation in the 1994 film, I Like It Like That and the 2018 television series, POSE. There are a number of themes that overlap between the two works, but for this episode, we focus on trans lives in Latinx communities, chosen family vs. biological family, queer activism, and the fluidity of Afro-Latinx Culture. Finally, we wrap up with a few additional recommendations for television and film that highlight the Afro-Latinx experience. Transcript Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sources: 2015: US Transgender Survey - Latino/a Respondents "We Deserve a Seat at the Table" by MJ Rodriguez “Where does resistance begin?” by Cindy Cruz “The Plasticity of Culture” by Ricardo C. Ainslie

In this week's Student Special we share projects by LTS 3012 students Maritza Cintron and Kelly Heeralall and LTS 1003 students Karla Alberto and Genesis Ramos.  Maritza and Kelly’s project considers Latina stereotypes, especially those around the hyper-sexualization of Latinas, dual identities, and machismo. As part of their episode, they referenced some of the works of literature we read in class during the semester including Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon, “How to Leave Hialeah” by Jennine Capó Crucet, and Once I Was You by Maria Hinojosa. Genesis and Karla’s project also looks at women, but under very different circumstances. They study the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic and investigate the treatment of women at that time both by the dictator himself and men in general.  Both projects consider the treatment of women and question what can be done to change these historical precedents. We hope you enjoy them. Follow the podcast: Twitter and Instagram: @LatinxVisions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hosts: Rojo Robles and Rebecca L. Salois Logo Design: Marcos Toledo Music: Shawn P. Russell Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois