Columbia professor to address ‘The Latino Vote in 2004’

BGSU’s 11th annual Latino Issues Conference will feature Dr. Rodolfo de la Garza, a Columbia University political scientist who will discuss “The Latino Vote in 2004” in his 12:30 p.m. keynote speech Thursday (April 21).

“Here and There: National and International Counterpoints” is the theme of the one-day conference, set for the Lenhart Grand Ballroom in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union.

Morning sessions will address “Latino Families and Communities,” from 9:10-10:20 a.m., and “Between Hollywood and the Southern Cone,” from 10:30-11:45 a.m. Afternoon topics are “Aftershocks of 9-11 in Spain and Mexico,” from 1:45-2:50 p.m., and “Between Photos, Film and Documentary,” from 3-4:15 p.m.

De la Garza is the Eaton Professor of Administrative Law and Municipal Science at Columbia, where he is also director of the Master of Public Administration Program. In addition, he has been vice president for research at the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute since 1994.

Hispanic magazine named de la Garza as one of the 100 most influential Hispanics in 1999 and 2004. In 1993, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Political Science Association’s (APSA’s) Committee on the Status of Latinos y Latinas in the Profession.

An author or editor of numerous books and articles on Hispanic politics, foreign policy and immigration, de la Garza has served as vice president of the APSA and is a longtime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

The Latino Issues Conference will begin at 9 a.m. Thursday with remarks by Angelita Cruz Bridges, an attorney in BGSU’s Student Legal Services, followed by the “Latino Families and Communities” session.
Among the speakers will be Drs. Rubén Viramontez Anguiano—the moderator—and Gloria Gonzalez-Kruger, faculty members in family and consumer sciences at BGSU and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, respectively. Also participating will be Bowling Green students Marco Antonio Chavez and Ester Cruz, as well as Juanita Costilla Ramirez from the Perrysburg Heights Community Association.

The second session, “Between Hollywood and the Southern Cone,” will include Dr. Ana del Sarto, romance languages, and moderator Carlos Adams, ethnic studies; students Evelyn Silva and Juliana Vukonic, and Dr. Frederick Gleach, an anthropologist and independent scholar.

Speaking at the first afternoon session, “Aftershocks of 9-11 in Spain and Mexico,” will be Dr. Amy Robinson and moderator Dallas Black, both romance languages, and students Evan Glasier, Brad Boswell and Mary Farsaci.

“Between Photos, Film and Documentary,” the day’s final session, will feature Adal Maldonado, a New York City-based Puerto Rican artist. Also joining moderator Dr. A. Rolando Andrade, ethnic studies, will be Gerardo Cummings, romance languages, and students Jeff Nolish and Farrah Garcia.