Latin American Studies at UO

PUBLIC TALK! What’s Happening in Cuba? 1959 Revolution to Current U.S. Pressures

📅 Thursday, April 9
⏰ 6:00 PM–7:00 PM
📍 Eugene Public Library (Downtown), Bascom/Tykeson Room

Join us on April 9 from 6–7 PM at the Eugene Public Library (Bascom/Tykeson Room) for a public talk by Dr. Lanie Millar, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of Oregon.

This talk explores Cuba’s current economic crisis, recent protests, and ongoing questions of political legitimacy, placing them in context from the 1959 Revolution to today’s evolving U.S.–Cuba relations. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the historical and contemporary forces shaping Cuba’s present moment.

This event is presented by the Center for Latino/a and Latin American Studies (CLLAS) and the Department of Global Studies at University of Oregon, with support from UO’s Division of Equity and Inclusion.

Check out this book review on the latest contribution by our founding LAS Director Carlos Aguirre in our Peripherica Journal!

Carlos Aguirre y William Fisher. Vigilar, castigar e imprimir: La producción de libros en la penitenciaría de Lima (1907-1961) . Trujillo: Reino de Almagro, 2025. | Periphērica Carlos Aguirre y William Fisher. Vigilar, castigar e imprimir: La producción de libros en la penitenciaría de Lima (1907-1961). Trujillo: Reino de Almagro, 2025. Authors Sebastian Rivera Mir El Colegio Mexiquense https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7491-9306 DOI: https://doi.org/10.7264/gzq2k379 Keywords:...

March 18, 2026

Today, civil rights leader Dolores Huerta issued the following statement:

“I am nearly 96 years old, and for the last 60 years have kept a secret because I believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for.

I have encouraged people to always use their voice. Following the New York Times’ multi-year investigation into s*xual misconduct by Cesar Chavez, I can no longer stay silent and must share my own experiences.

As a young mother in the 1960s, I experienced two separate s*xual encounters with Cesar. The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having s*x with him, and I didn’t feel I could say no because he was someone that I admired, my boss and the leader of the movement I had already devoted years of my life to. The second time I was forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped.

I had experienced abuse and s*xual violence before, and I convinced myself these were incidents that I had to endure alone and in secret. Both s*xual encounters with Cesar led to pregnancies. I chose to keep my pregnancies secret and, after the children were born, I arranged for them to be raised by other families that could give them stable lives.

Over the years, I have been fortunate to develop a deep relationship with these children, who are now close to my other children, their siblings. But even then, no one knew the full truth about how they were conceived until just a few weeks ago.

I carried this secret for as long as I did because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was my life’s work. The formation of a union was the only vehicle to accomplish and secure those rights and I wasn’t going to let Cesar or anyone else get in the way. I channeled everything I had into advocating on behalf of millions of farmworkers and others who were suffering and deserved equal rights.

I have never identified myself as a victim, but I now understand that I am a survivor — of violence, of s*xual abuse, of domineering men who saw me, and other women, as property, or things to control.

I am telling my story because the New York Times has indicated that I was not the only one — there were others. Women are coming forward, sharing that they were s*xually abused and assaulted by Cesar when they were girls and teenagers.

The knowledge that he hurt young girls sickens me. My heart aches for everyone who suffered alone and in silence for years. There are no words strong enough to condemn those deplorable actions that he did. Cesar’s actions do not reflect the values of our community and our movement.

The farmworker movement has always been bigger and far more important than any one individual. Cesar’s actions do not diminish the permanent improvements achieved for farmworkers with the help of thousands of people. We must continue to engage and support our community, which needs advocacy and activism now more than ever.

I will continue my commitments to workers, as well as my commitment to women’s rights, to make sure we have a voice and that our communities are treated with dignity and given the equity that they have so long been denied.

I have kept this secret long enough. My silence ends here."

If you are a survivor or if you have been impacted by any type of s*xual violence, please visit the Dolores Huerta Foundation website, where you will find a list of resources for support. https://doloreshuerta.org/s*xual_assault_resources/

Read the full statement and Spanish-language version here: https://medium.com/p/e74c20430555?postPublishedType=initial

MEDIA CONTACT

Fenton Chief of Issue Advocacy & Crisis Management Lead Erik Olvera | [email protected] | 415-994-3242

Lara Berthold | [email protected]

Conference Proposal Submission | Global Futures of Higher Education: Autonomy in the Crosshairs The Schnitzer School of Global Studies and Languages invites proposals for its second annual international conference, Global Futures of Higher Education: Autonomy in the Crosshairs, to be held May 7–9, 2026, at the University of Oregon.

Voluspa Jarpa’s discussion of her work with declassified US documents of the Dirty Wars.

Mexican novelist Yuri Herrera came to UO this week and led key discussions about his literary oeuvre. Thanks, Yuri, for your generous and committed exchanges with our students!

Join us for this engaging series of speakers this spring!

Indigenous resistance to environmental depredation, panel on Lomerío, Bolivia by Monkoxi leaders and scholars

Schedule — PIELC Conference Schedule The conference brochure and a list of PIELC panels with the panelist organizations are available below or here at this link!

Primer vistazo a 'Pedro Páramo', la adaptación 📚 de la aclamada novela de Juan Rulfo que prepara Netflix.

El mexicano 🇲🇽 Rodrigo Prieto, nominado al Oscar a Mejor Fotografía por 'Brokeback Mountain', 'Silence' y 'The Irishman', se encargará de la dirección.

Prof Daniel Balderston will speak on Borges later this month! Join us!