Teach-in on Central America: Crisis, Capitalism, Exodus
With Leigh Barrick, Dawn Paley, and Nick Middeldorp
March 22, 2019, 3-5pm
Henry Angus building, Room 254.
Over the past years, an exodus of people from Central America have traversed Mexico in search of asylum and the possibility of a decent life in the United States. Flash points of this crisis have emerged in the mainstream media, particularly with regards to the treatment of migrant children in the US: from the arrival of thousands of unaccompanied Central American children to the US border in 2014, to the increased separation of children and babies from their parents by US immigration officials in 2018.
At the end of last year, migrants in Honduras began self-organizing to leave in groups for their own safety in what were later deemed migrant caravans. In large part because of Trump’s tweets, the 2018 caravans were widely covered in the media, but the root causes of out-migration from Central America remain largely unexamined.
This teach-in features three expert panelists who will highlight how structural violence and exploitation have driven the exodus from Central America; the changing nature of the journeys migrants through Mexico; and the obstacles US border authorities have placed in the paths of asylum seekers.
Program
15.00 – 15.15: welcome and introduction
15.15 – 16.15: panel discussion
16.15 – 17.00: questions and answers
Panelists
Leigh Barrick has done extensive research on the deterrence policies initiated by the USA to prevent Central Americans from attempting to cross the border. Such policies create monumental hurdles for individuals and families seeking asylum in the USA. Leigh has a PhD in Human Geography from UBC.
Dawn Paley is Mexico-based independent journalist and researcher. Her critically acclaimed first book, Drug War Capitalism (AK Press, 2014) upends mainstream reporting on the drug war. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the Autonomous University of Puebla.
Nick Middeldorp has lived across Central America for the past 4 years, working on topics such as Indigenous rights and environmental justice in Honduras and Nicaragua. He is currently pursuing a PhD in the Department of Geography at UBC.
Further reading:
Book chapter: Capitalism & Crisis in Central America, by Dawn Paley.