May 25, 2011 5:00 pm
Free Admission (Limited Capacity)
SFU Harbour Centre
7th floor HC 7000
515 West Hastings St,Vancouver, BC
DR. ALEXANDER DAWSON
Associate Professor of History and Director of Latin American Studies
Simon Fraser University
“1910 from 2011: Mexico’s Revolution in the 21st century”
Mexico’s 1910 Revolution was a defining moment of the 20th century; the first nationalist popular insurgency to topple an authoritarian regime in a century that would be dominated by these types of struggles on a global level. But what remains of the Revolution today? What traces of that great struggle can be felt in contemporary Mexico? This presentation will consider the ways that the Revolution still resonates in Mexico, in society, culture, and politics.
DR. WILLIAM FRENCH
Associate Professor of History
University of British Columbia
“Mexico’s Popular Revolution: An Unofficial History”
Rather than focusing on the well-known leaders who have come to form the pantheon of national revolutionary heroes—Madero, Villa, Zapata, Carranza, Obregón, Cárdenas, etc.—this talk attempts to evaluate popular pressures for change during the period from c. 1910 to 1940. It moves away from official history and narratives to evaluate the extent to which pressure from various groups helped set local and national agendas, how politicians and leaders at various levels were pushed to respond to such groups and take up various programs, and what changed over time. It also reflects on recent work on the history of gender in Mexico to think about the relationship between revolution and changes in social attitudes and understandings of such things as gender and sexuality.