TUCLA
VIII Annual
Tulane Undergraduate Conference on
Latin America
Saturday Nov. 20, 2010
Jones Hall 102 and 108
Sponsored by the Stone Center for Latin American Studies
The Stone Center’s annual TUCLA conference is an interdisciplinary undergraduate symposium in
which seniors from the Latin American Studies core seminar present their individual research
projects. TUCLA was formally launched in Fall of 2003 as a means to provide Latin American
Studies undergraduates with an opportunity to present papers in the style and atmosphere of an
academic conference. The conference is designed to enlist all of Tulane’s LAST seniors in a
shared discussion of the region, its society and its cultures.
Schedule
- Coffee and Welcome 8:30-9:00 - Session I 9:00-10:30 PANEL 1: WELFARE (JONES 102)
Compromise and Conflict: Recent Policy Debates in Latin America.
Carlos Grover, “Property Struggles In Brazilian Cities: ‘Treating The Equal Equally
and the Unequal Unequally’”
Abigail Nixon, “Cuba’s Escuela Latinoamericana de Medicina: Doctors of Science
and Conscience”
Jessie Yoste, “Hexed? Vodou Observance of Trauma through the Lens of the 2010
Haitian Earthquake”
Discussant: Dr. Maureen Long, Murphy Institute f Political Economy and Center for
Ethics and Public Affairs
PANEL 2: IDENTITY (JONES 108)
The Paradoxes of Perspective: Agency, Identity and Nation in Latin America
Film and Literature
Davita Petty, “’Zora, don’t you come here and tell de biggest lie first thing’: Creole
Identity in the Writing of Zora Neale Hurston
Cristina Alvarado-Suarez, “Desenmascarando la identidad nacional: The Problem of
National Integration and Nicaraguan Literature”
Phylicia Martel, “Romance and Revolution at a Crossroads: Mapping Zapatista
Discourse in Corazón del tiempo”
Discussant: Dr. Roxanne Davila, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
- Session II 10:45-12:15 PANEL 3: ENCOUNTER (JONES 102)
Intermestic Identities: Twenty-First-Century Geo-Politics and Cultural
Transformation
Stephanie Moore, “Blown Away: Indigenous Rights in Coca-Crazed Bolivia”
Eric Schwartz, “Communism’s Silent Killer: The Hustle to Freedom”
Jessica Frankel, “A New Hegemony for Bolivia? Embracing Indigeneity in Response
to the War on Drugs”
Discussant: Dr. Raúl A. Sánchez Urribarrí, Department of Political Science
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PANEL 4: NATION (JONES 108)
Solidarity Beyond the State: New Concepts of Citizenship in Post-Neo-Liberal
Latin America
Eva Canan “Lixo Humano? The Social Transformation of Brazilian Waste Pickers”
Pike, Rebecca “Children of the Revolution: Afro-Brazilian Youth Movements in the
21st Century”
Jane Esslinger, “Slaughter Houses, Factories and Conventillos: New Spaces for
Culture-Based Urban Development and Citizen Participation in Neo-Liberal
Buenos Aires”
Discussant: Dr. David G. Ortiz, Department of Sociology
- Lunch (Greenleaf Conference Room) 12:15 -1:15
(By Invitation Only)
- Session III 1:15 -2: 45 PANEL 5: EXCHANGE (JONES 102)
Our North is the South: How Recent Migration Patterns and Policy Trouble
Conventional Wisdom
Kathleen Dunn, “Welcome Home? Consequences of Return Migration in Western
Mexico”
Rachel Young, “Salir Adelante: The Curious Case of Peruvian Migration to Chile and
the Singularity of the Peruvian Migrant”
Monica Peters, “Immigration is the Sincerest Form of Flattery: The Formation of
Mexico’s immigration policy and its Role as a Receiving and Transit State.”
Discussant: Dr. Casey Kane Love, Department of Political Science
PANEL 6: CREATIVITY (JONES 108)
A History of Violence: Human Dignity and the Politics of Representation
Emily Gatehouse, “‘Me gustaría saber más. Me gustaría saber todo.’ The Duality of
Memorializing Argentine State Terrorism”
Rebecca Chilbert, “Made in Mexico: How the Mexican Media presents Slavery as
Something Made in China”
Susie DeLapp, “Failing the Poto Mitan? International Aid Organizations and
Structural Violence in Haiti”
Discussant: Dr. Justin Wolfe, Department of History
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Paper Abstracts
PANEL 1: WELFARE
Compromise and Conflict: Recent Policy Debates in Latin America.
Carlos Grover, “Property Struggles In Brazilian Cities: ‘Treating The Equal Equally and the Unequal
Unequally’” This project explores differing conceptions of urban property in Brazil and how these
conceptions consolidated in articles 182 and 183 of Brazil’s 1988 constitution. Article 182 states that property
must fulfill a social function. This clause engages a conception of property that sees property ownership as a
right that comes with responsibilities. The inclusion of article 182 opens the door to redistribution of property
to those who will have greater use for it. While article 182 guarantees that property fulfill a social function,
article 183 establishes extremely limited mechanisms for redistribution. I argue that differing conceptions of
property developed in a highly stratified colonial context and that these strata were sufficiently isolated from
one another to develop their own ideas of what property ownership meant. These differing and often
competing understandings were preserved and manifest themselves in elements of articles 182 and 183. These
two articles create a strange situation in which the benefits of non-elite strata understandings of property can
be extended to elites, while non-elites experience extremely limited gains.
Abigail Nixon, “Cuba’s Escuela Latinoamericana de Medicina: Doctors of Science and Conscience” One
of the greatest successes of the Cuban Revolution is its wide reaching medical diplomacy program. Cuban
medical teams have been aiding areas in need since the 1960s; moreover, with the goal of creating a longlasting and stable national medical infrastructure, Cuban medical schools have been established abroad to help
educate students from the region. These students will replace Cuban physicians working abroad. In 1999, the
Cuban government created the Escuela Latinoamericana de Medicina (ELAM; Latin American School of
Medicine) with the intent to train doctors from families that would not typically have access to a medical
education at no cost. These students must, however, commit to serving underdeveloped areas after graduation.
Since it’s establishment, ELAM has produced 7248 physicians from over 40 countries, many with a focus on
primary care or family medicine. In this article, I explore how a school that prioritizes the education of
marginalized peoples improves health indices in underserved areas through accessible primary care.
Specifically, I argue that the recruitment of groups that are typically marginalized with a commitment to
working in underdeveloped areas after graduation enables ELAM to produce physicians that successfully
improve health care programs in their native countries. I propose that the United States government should
look to the Cuban model to learn about methods of improving health care and lowering its associated costs. I
respond to critics who doubt the validity of ELAM's curriculum or the worth of the degree given upon
graduation, contending that the program’s focus on minority students, emphasis on primary care, and serious
commitment to aiding underserved communities should be a model for the United States government seeking
methods of improving health care and lowering its associated costs.
Jessie Yoste, “Hexed? Vodou Observance of Trauma through the Lens of the 2010 Haitian
Earthquake” In the aftermath of the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, emergency medical responders
evaluated and treated those seeking medical treatment through the rapid establishment of temporary clinics.
After the treatment of physical wounds, the next injuries to be addressed were psychological. Trauma and
distress following natural disaster require specialized treatment, according to guidelines approved by many
international medical regulating organizations. The interpretation of the disaster often appears through
retrospective reflection. This paper explores Haitian Vodou practices and beliefs in relation to rituals and
reflection on major issues facing a community after disaster, specifically mental distress or illness and mass
casualties. I discuss the ways in which Haitian Vodou influences the reflective processes of observers and
causes obstacles for conventionally trained counselors and physicians. I argue that the use of Vodou ritual as
treatment for trauma creates a sustainable practice for clinicians, which is economically and culturally
appropriate to Haitian realities. My examination of the discontinuities found within conventional and
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alternative medicinal practices, specifically Haitian Vodou, reveals the necessity for the incorporation of
Vodou culture to effectively aid in long-term mental health recovery in Haiti.
PANEL 2: IDENTITY
The Paradoxes of Perspective:
Agency, Identity and Nation in Latin America Film and Literature
Davita Petty, “Zora, don’t you come here and tell de biggest lie first thing.” Creole Identity in the
Writing of Zora Neale Hurston Alice Walker, the African American feminist author responsible for the
excavation and promotion of Zora Neale Hurston’s work, remarks distastefully over the inconsistencies in
Hurston’s autobiography Dust Tracks on the Road calling it “the most unfortunate thing Zora ever wrote.”
Walker is amongst Hurston’s most ardent supporters, yet is unable to reconcile the discovery of fabrication
within a textual format that she feels is supposed to be completely factual. I contend that readers with a
limited understanding of Hurston’s influences, most particularly Caribbean culture and art forms, struggle to
interact with this fluidity of concept and veracity, misunderstanding intentional vagueness as the author’s
failure to create explicit conclusions. I will begin by establishing the creole origins of Hurston’s identity by
drawing upon scholarship that defies national boundaries and acknowledges the American South as a cultural
extension of the Caribbean. These theories will be carried into an analysis textual evidence exemplifying
shared Black Atlantic traditions such as disguised subversion, oral tradition and blended religion. My research
will examine anthropologic studies and literary theory mirroring the academic disciplines most commonly
engaged by this author. I argue that Hurston’s invocation of these elements allows her to resist creative
limitation and repression by embracing ambiguity and multiplicity. The acceptance of Hurston’s process and
product as creole provides a system of language and metaphors that advances the interpretation of Hurston’s
writing and displays the error of critique that does not engage the cultural identity and experience of this
author.
Cristina Alvarado-Suarez, “‘Desenmascarando la identidad nacional’: The Problem of National
Integration and Nicaraguan Literature” Until the 1984 Sandinista multicultural citizenship reforms,
scarce attention had been paid to issues relating to Nicaragua’s Atlantic Coast. These reforms, which
officially took effect in 1987, were meant to provide cultural autonomy, self-governance to the Atlantic Coast
as well as provide land rights to Costeño indigenous and Afro-Nicaraguans. However, scholars have argued
they failed to perform their inclusionary purpose, resulting in the continuation of the cultural separation of the
Atlantic Coast from the dominant national mainstream. This separation is evident in the creation of the arts in
both the Pacific and Atlantic Coast, in particular through literature. This paper examines the literature of
Pablo Antonio Cuadra –founding member of the Nicaraguan Vanguard- and Lizandro Chavez Alfaro –a
Bluefields native and advocate of the Atlantic Coast –before and after these reforms to explore the problem of
cultural and political integration of the once Mosquito Atlantic Coast, with the rest of the Nicaraguan region. I
examine Pablo Antonio Cuadra’s literature in relation to the greater Vanguardia discourse of mestizaje as
well as its influence on the politics of the country in the first half of the twentieth century; and its change after
the multicultural citizenship reforms. Lizandro Chavez Alfaro’s work, in contrast, advocates for the rights of
Costeños as well as for autonomy of the Atlantic Coast, and whose literature is drenched with nostalgia of
how the Atlantic Coast could have been as well as criticism of Nicaragua’s Central government’s policies –or
lack thereof- towards the region. Alfaro criticizes the reforms by rewriting the history of the coast from a
costeño perspective. I argue that though the Sandinista reforms recognized a long neglected sector of the
population in the Atlantic Coast, literary production from both the Coast and mainstream suggests that they
did not manage to bridge the political and economic gap. Moreover, they did not significantly alter the
dominant mestizo construct by integrating the Atlantic Coast into a multicultural Nicaragua.
Phylicia Martel, “Romance and Revolution at a Crossroads: Mapping Zapatista Discourse in Corazón
del tiempo” Over the past sixteen years, Mexico’s revolutionary Zapatista Army of National Liberation
(Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional, EZLN) have intended to spread a message that represents who
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they are and what they stand for across borders. By harnessing the power of media and technology, they have
been able to gain widespread support from a global audience. Corazón del tiempo (2009) is one of the most
recent media productions to surface from the Zapatista media artillery. The film presents a fictional account
of a love triangle between three members of a rural, indigenous, Zapatista community, where the struggle for
autonomy is ever-present. I argue that the film represents the Zapatistas’ effort to promote their ideology and
an awareness of the on-going struggle for indigenous autonomy in the Chiapas region. Nevertheless, the
intended local message and the methodology of producing and delivering it to a global audience forged a
problematic crossroads, where multiple, conflicting representations of the movement meet. This paper
explores the ways in which Corazón del tiempo engages several different audiences, attempting to blend the
romanticized, traditional perception of the Indian with the modern, politicized view of the Indian within a
broader revolutionary history of Latin America.
PANEL 3: ENCOUNTER
Intermestic Identities:
Twenty-First-Century Geo-Politics and Cultural Transformation
Stephanie Moore, “Blown Away: Indigenous Rights in Coca-Crazed Bolivia” Over the past two decades,
cocaine use in the United States, Canada and Europe has grown exponentially. As a result, the market for the
coca leaf is larger than ever before. Evo Morales, President of Bolivia and party member to the Coca Grower
Union in Chapare, has given rise to a booming coca economy in Bolivia, both licit and illicit, which is now
funding a significant percentage of the Bolivian economy. Unfortunately, those benefiting from this rapid
growth in the coca plant are rarely indigenous communities, and are instead narcotraffickers from nearby
countries interested in cultivating the coca into cocaine to sell for significantly larger profits. In this paper I
propose that while extensive growth is helping the Bolivian economy presently and Morales totes that it is in
the protection of indigenous rights, coca growth has actually brought more violence to the indigenous
populations of Bolivia and will halt long-term economic growth due to the nature of the plant itself and its
legality internationally. Alternative growth markets subsidized by the Bolivian government and the United
Nations would be a much better alternative to extensive coca growth, which currently funds coca-based
companies established by Morales such as “Coca-Colla” with real coca and coca leaf tea. My research will
help to redefine the definition of the United Nations 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, Article 14
and determine the best methods for protecting indigenous use of the coca leaf while keeping the market low
for narcotraffickers and thus helping to protect indigenous rights to use coca in religious and traditional
practices without leading to unnecessary violence in Bolivia.
Eric Schwartz, “Communism’s Silent Killer: Cuba's Jinetero and The Hustle to Freedom”
Jineterismo has been described as a movement of those engaged in illegal activities such as prostitution,
solicitation of tourists and unsanctioned selling of goods. It has blossomed since Cuba's "special period" of
the early 1990’s. Under one of the most repressive authoritarian regimes in Central America the Jinetero
openly roam the streets of Havana, dressed in expense clothes and driving luxury cars in search of tourists
who they try to convince to purchase their services. The monies so earned are considered illegal profit. Their
flashy lifestyle is emblematic of the rewards gained through capitalistic entrepreneurship. In a nation on the
brink of financial collapse those who thrive do so illegally. The incentive to oppose the communist
government grows in the population with every gesture of envy of the Jinetero’s extravagance. Every dollar
they earn is a subversive rebellion against the conformity of the collective. It may be asked if the open
activities of the Jinetero pose a legitimate threat to the communist establishment. Does the bribing of police
and the lack of action taken against them represent a weakening of Castro’s repressive hold on the people of
Cuba? Or perhaps their presence is simply ignored with a wink and a nod. I contend that the Jinetero are in
fact representative of a change in the spirit and psychology of the Cuban people and that this change does
threaten the functioning of the Cuban communist system. Further I suggest that the influence of the
capitalistic spirit instilled in part by the Jinetero will manifest itself in 'bottom up' reform of the communist
political system.
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Jessica Frankel, “A New Hegemony for Bolivia? Embracing Indigeneity in Response to the War on
Drugs” The United States’ misguided drug policy attacks Andean farmers, mistakenly characterizing the
coca crop as an enemy. If cocaine is viewed as an enemy, then logically so is coca, and all who grow and
produce it. However, the coca leaf has been an essential part of Andean culture for millennia, and continues
to be widely used in a spiritual and healing context to this day. The War on Drugs transformed coca into a
commodity that the U.S. is determined to destroy. The most brutal attempts to eradicate coca came at the
same time as neoliberal reforms, which Bolivians collectively experienced as attempts to squander their
sovereignty and destroy their culture. In this paper, I argue that, as a result of this treatment, coca has
morphed from being a normal part of the quotidian into a monumental and problematic symbol of identity for
the Bolivian popular classes. Specifically I explore the ways in which Bolivians have reacted to what they
experience as a threat to their culture by taking a protective stance over their right to grow coca and
embracing a romanticized vision of indigenous identity. Political leaders Evo Morales of the MAS
(Movement Towards Socialism) and Felipe Quispe of the MIP (Indigenous Pachakuti Movement) recognized
this opportunity to capitalize on identity politics, each carefully framing their movements around the
importance of indigenous identity. This paper argues that while Quispe promotes an exclusive indianist
identity, Morales endorses the new hegemonic “pueblo origonario,” or “original people” ideal: a new, all
inclusive, semi-indigenous identity, which I assert, allows Bolivians plural, overlapping identities that claim
indigenous heritage without limiting themselves to the historically stigmatized ‘indigena’ identity. I conclude
that, although origionario identity seems all-inclusive, it assumes that there is only one way of being
indigenous potentially marginalizing those indigenous people who don’t fit the new ideal.
PANEL 4: NATION
Solidarity Beyond the State:
New Concepts of Citizenship in Post-Neo-Liberal Latin America
Eva Canan “Lixo Humano? The Social Transformation of Brazilian Waste Pickers” Hundreds of
thousands of Brazilians try to make their living from trash. Known as catadores, these urban waste pickers
collect and sell recyclable materials. The intense increase in consumption and urbanization that Brazil
experienced in the second half of the twentieth century forced many people into this line of work. Catadores
have historically been kept at the margins of society, excluded socially and politically, and have endured
extreme poverty; many have been degraded to the point that they feel as if they are lixo humano—human
trash. Today, however, many catadores live in better conditions, are politically involved, and are more
integrated into mainstream Brazilian society. This paper seeks to explain what accounts for these changes.
The catadores have begun working together instead of individually, forming cooperatives and other
associations; most analysts agree that this has contributed to the positive changes. I argue that the successes
catadores have achieved are due not only to their working collectively, but also to their organizations’
partnerships with local and national government, businesses, universities, nongovernmental organizations,
and their communities. I analyze how the national movement has made demands of the government, as well
as specific instances of collaboration on a local level. By showing how catadores’ success is made possible by
working with other entities, I underscore the importance of cooperation with other actors, who in turn can
reap economic and environmental benefits through partnership. This rings true in other contexts in which
marginalized groups benefit from the support of more established and powerful organizations. While some
entities may be hesitant to form partnerships with traditionally marginal classes of people, the case of the
catadores in Brazil shows that the choice to collaborate has had positive social outcomes and, in many cases,
proves to be a good investment.
Pike, Rebecca “Children of the Revolution: Afro-Brazilian Youth Movements in the 21st Century” In
2001, the Brazilian government ratified an affirmative action law giving Afro-Brazilians a better opportunity
to attend universities and prestigious high schools. Many scholars and analysts attribute this law to
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government efforts to create the appearance of an anti-racist, claiming that Afro-Brazilian political
organizations had very little to do with passing the law. Indeed, many scholars contend that Afro-Brazilian
civil rights movements have little influence on contemporary society, having reached their peak in the
nineteen-eighties becoming dormant. On the contrary, this paper argues that Afro-Brazilian civil rights
movements have been very influential and active, but have been overlooked because they do not employ the
“militant-style” political strategies of the 1970s and 1980s. Moreover, these movements appeal to youth
through new outlets and technologies such as blogs and music. This paper analyzes the language and
strategies of five contemporary race-based political movements, including Associação Posse Hausa, Encontro
Nacional de Juventude Negra, Movimento Negro Unificado, Quilombo Raça e Classe, and Soweto
Organização Negra. I look at Pan-African identity, hip-hop, gírias, and international and national conferences
as motivation for growth of Afro-Brazilian civil rights movements, and as contributions to the progress of
civil rights for Afro-Brazilians. Their success include being contributors to the Plano Nacional de Promoção
da Igualdade Racial, key players in racial equality discussions at the Durban Conference in 2001 and the
passing of affirmative action, and creating a type of musical movement that aimed to unify Afro-Brazilians
through positive messages about being Afro-Brazilian. Due to a striving for a unified sense of Afro-Brazilian
culture and identity, youth Afro-Brazilian civil rights movements have enormous potential for furthering
equal opportunities for Afro-Brazilians. They have already made great strides within the last ten years and
have an optimistic future for further development and promoting positive change.
Jane Esslinger, “Slaughter Houses, Factories and Conventillos: New Spaces for Culture-Based Urban
Development and Citizen Participation in Neo-Liberal Buenos Aires” Before Argentina’s return to
democracy no one would have believed that porteños would head to a metallurgic factory for free clown and
trapeze workshops or flock by the thousands to an abandoned slaughter house for a weekly cultural fair, but
it’s happening. Throughout the city the working class, starving young artists and immigrants are reclaiming
industrial spaces and transforming them into places of people-driven cultural production. However, these
fascinating experiments in grass-roots development aren’t coming out of idle time in the hands of well off
citizens but rather out of necessity in an economically difficult moment. In this paper I argue that two bottom
up experiments in grass roots urban development are enhancing citizen development through democratic
participation that comes from Argentina’s socio-economic context of neoliberal reforms. Contrary to how the
effects of neoliberal reforms in Argentina have been understood, I’ve found that the same processes that
pushed people into poverty are paradoxically responsible for fostering the conditions that led to what I claim
is a more viable and more democratic form of development. Culture-based urban development ideally strives
to reconcile economic goals with social inclusion and can be separated into two categories. The first type is
top down government-sponsored projects such as the revitalization of colonial city centers. The second type
is bottom up community-based projects that use creative methods to address social marginalization, provide
security, and increase opportunities for residents in excluded neighborhoods. I use the top down development
example of the historic district of San Telmo as a contrast to the two bottom-up examples. My research
reveals that the grass-roots model solves social problems in Buenos Aires by creating public spaces and
providing opportunities to channel creativity to serve individual and collective needs.
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PANEL 5: EXCHANGE
Our North is the South:
How Recent Migration Patterns and Policy Trouble Conventional Wisdom
Kathleen Dunn, “Welcome Home? Consequences of Return Migration in Western Mexico”
Every year, twenty percent of labor migrants from the Western Mexican states of Michoacán, Guanajuato,
and Jalisco return home from the U.S. Among these three states, return migration has diverse effects on social
values and political institutions. I focused on determining why this discrepancy persists and what factors –
domestic or external – led to such results. To achieve this I analyzed data from the 2000 and 2005 INEGI
national Mexican censuses including migration rates, and social development indicators. My research
revealed surprising data – evidence that return migration has a negative correlation with social development in
Mexican home communities in terms of education and human development indicators. I also found that fewer
women returned to areas in Mexico that boast higher rates of return migration. As my conclusions indicate,
although return migration in Western Mexico introduces the culture of its northern neighbor, it also reinforces
existing traditional social values as seen in the return migration theory of structuralism. For example, return
migrants often choose to purchase foreign luxury cars and consumer goods rather than investing their savings
in technology, community development, or the local economy. I argue that this behavior and value system
allows the traditional social hierarchy and inequality to persist even as economies grow and local
municipalities become part of the global community. The fewer number of women returning to their home
communities is evidence of such reinforced traditional values. In the United States’ cultural context women
have increased opportunity for social mobility and authority. In order for return migration to have positive
effects on human development, migrants and their families must increase investment of their resources in
local economies and sustainable community development.
Rachel Young, “Salir Adelante: The Curious Case of Peruvian Migration to Chile and the Singularity of
the Peruvian Migrant” Chile has long been the destination of international immigrants from a variety of
sending countries. However, in the past 20 years, Peruvians have taken over as the largest single immigrant
group in Chile. While many migration theorists and other scholars emphasize economic factors in the
determining reasons of migrations, the Peruvian example suggests something quite different; the migration is
overwhelming feminine, the migrants have much higher levels of education than the norm, economic factors
do not suggest Peruvians benefit from the migration and Peruvians living in Chile return to Peru in higher
numbers than any other receiving country. While scholars recognize the unique characteristics of Peruvian
emigration, many fail to explain the factors that cause it. In this paper, I argue that Peruvians are not
migrating for economic reasons as scholars would expect, but rather that migration in Peru is a culturally
embedded process. Moreover, my research suggests that the political relation between Chile and Peru
combined with the authoritarian regimes in these two countries, lessening authoritarianism in the former and
growing in the latter, influenced migration. My final argument will be that the creation of a niche in the
domestic field for Peruvian in-house nannies also increases migration flows, because many Chilean women
refuse to take on this type of work.
Monica Peters, “Immigration is the Sincerest Form of Flattery: The Formation of Mexico’s
immigration policy and its Role as a Receiving and Transit State” Immigration to the United States from
Mexico has become a huge political fight within the international community, both from a policy-making and
social standpoint. Both countries have funneled millions of dollars into regulating and controlling migratory
flows. However the issue has widely been regarded as a United States’ problem. Consistently labeled as the
sending state for migrants, scholars have traditionally emphasized Mexico’s emigration problem as a result of
Mexico’s non-intervention position in regards to immigration. Few works have drawn attention to the
immigration problems Mexico faces within its own country and, when they do, scholars attribute Mexican
policy to US pressure. Yet, I argue that Mexico faces a much larger immigration problem domestically,
which has resulted in one of the most restrictive immigration policies in the region. While it is evident that
immigration policies have been influenced by Mexico’s relation with the US, I contend that domestic
problems within the country have played a much more influential role in the formation of Mexico’s
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immigration policies. We must not only look at Mexico as a sending state, but as a receiving and transit state
for Latin American migratory movements as well. My paper explores how the formation of Mexico’s
immigration policy is shaped in response to its problems with the economy, Southern states, and narcotrafficking, and that while US pressure plays an important role in policy-making, it is ultimately fueled by its
own domestic concerns.
PANEL 6: CREATIVITY
A History of Violence:
Human Dignity and the Politics of Representation
Emily Gatehouse, “ ‘Me gustaría saber más. Me gustaría saber todo.’ The Duality of Memorializing
Argentine State Terrorism” Between 1976 and 1983 Argentina experienced a military dictatorship, and
Dirty War, wherein thousands of Argentine citizens were disappeared, taken to Clandestine Detention Centers
(CDCs), tortured and frequently murdered. Those who were kidnapped are referred to as los desaparecidos
(the disappeared). Following these events the subsequent Argentine governments enacted laws and created
memorial spaces in order to facilitate the reconciliation process. There are two very distinct issues regarding
the memorialization of the genocide: the duality of the known and unknown. The known is comprised of
disappearances, CDCs, torture and murder. In contrast the unknown is related to the lack of exact number of
desaparecidos; estimates range from 9,000 to 30,000, along with their ambiguity surrounding their resting
places. To deal with the duality of fact and ambiguity there must be two different types of memorials. I argue
that the known and unknown are reflected in two distinct memorials: La Escuela de Mecánica de la Armada
(the Naval Mechanical School, ESMA) and el Parque de la Memoria. I analyze the use of space, location, art,
personal experience and tours, employing Hugo Vezzeti’s theory of memory. Vezzeti contends that there are
two types of memory: memoria literal (literal memory) and memoria ejemplar (exemplary memory), the
former, the recovery of an event as a singular fact, which does not transcend what happened, and the latter, is
able to transcend the event, through the individual relationship or subjective. I discuss ESMA in terms of
memoria literal and the Parque in terms of memoria exemplar, arguing that the two memorials are crucial in
the construction of different types of memory. While these two memorials differ in the types of memory they
evoke, they both allow Argentines to remember the same event in different ways.
Rebecca Chilbert, “Made in Mexico: How the Mexican Media presents Slavery as Something Made in
China” The Cornell University International Labor Office estimates that in Latin America there are 1.3
million forced laborers. Moreover, a 2009 U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report describes Mexico as
a “large source, transit and destination country” for forced labor. Nevertheless only 11 of cases have been
prosecuted in Mexico since domestic anti-trafficking legislation was passed in 2007. My paper seeks to
investigate the lack of attention to this national problem. It analyzes nationwide media reporting of 2005 2009 trafficking incidents and other textile labor infractions, looking at the media’s presentation of cases and
definitions in the reports. I argue that there is a definitional ambiguity that allows the media to deny this
reality. I report the findings of a survey 248 national newspapers, in which I identified pertinent definitional
keywords for Mexican trafficking and tracked the incidence of stories on related subjects. My research
suggests that the Mexican press represents a divided discourse on slavery. While it presents internal slavery
and labor protests through a solely economic lens, it presents external slavery, such as that in China, as a
foreign exotic vilified entity. It is the external slavery that is presented consistently with both the UN and the
Mexican government’s definitions of slavery. The Mexican press, presumably reporting to expose truths and
hidden injustices, is further masking its own countries problems by highlighting slavery through forced labor
as a foreign issue. My paper demonstrates that how an issue is presented can alter political, social, and even
economic agendas. In the case of Mexico, this means that if internal slavery isn’t seen as the ongoing
fundamental problem that it is, then the political pressure to stop it will not have the necessary force to enact
strong change.
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Susie DeLapp, “Failing the Poto Mitan: International Aid Organizations and Structural Violence in
Haiti” Women in Haiti are the “poto mitan”, or pillar of society, who struggle inexhaustibly with direct
violence in their daily lives. International aid groups commonly extend support to Haitian women in hopes of
promoting democracy and breeding solidarity among the people. In this paper I argue that, despite their
efforts to alleviate women's struggles, such organizations can indirectly exacerbate structural violence.
Structural violence refers to the social, economic, and political mechanisms that prevent the poor majority
from escaping their misery while safeguarding the position of the wealthy elite in power. International
organizations impose foreign views and can consequently overlook the more pertinent struggles such as the
direct violence that women face daily. I focus on one particular example: the policies and activities of
Canada’s National Coordination for Advocacy on Women’s Rights in Haiti (CONAP) in the aftermath of the
coup that removed Jean-Bertrand Aristide from office. The majority of Haitians viewed the democratic
election of Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 1990 as a move towards peace in their country. Canadian funded aid
groups including CONAP supported Aristide’s removal. Following the coup, violence towards women
escalated, with rape adopted as a political weapon. Taking into consideration international discussion of
CONAP’s intentions and actions, feminist dialogue in the Caribbean and Haiti, and most relevant the reports
of women in Haiti during the 1991-1994 coup, this paper explores the divide between the objectives of
CONAP and the reality of the multidimensional violence faced by Haitian women daily. My research
suggests that CONAP may have been more motivated by political goals than the improvement of social and
economic conditions of women in Haiti. Regardless, I conclude that the actions of CONAP have not been
conducive to the promotion of the social and economic rights of the majority of women in Haiti, who live in
abject poverty.
Participant Biographies
Cristina Alvarado-Suarez is a senior majoring in Latin American Studies, with a double major in
Architecture. Her interest in Latin American Studies stems from her Cuban and Nicaraguan heritage, and her
years of living in Nicaragua as a child. Her concentration in the field focuses on Identity, Architecture and
Urban Studies throughout Latin America. She will be graduating May 2011 with a BA in Latin American
Studies, a BA and a Master of Architecture.
A Nashville native, Eva Canan graduated high school in 2006 and then spent a year as an exchange student
in Machala, Ecuador, which is known as la capital bananera del mundo. At Tulane she is majoring in Latin
American Studies and Spanish, and also enjoys taking music classes and language classes including
Portuguese, Hebrew, and Arabic. She spent a semester in Havana, Cuba, where she immersed herself in
boleros, and also spent a summer abroad in Guadalajara, Mexico, where she eagerly viewed daily episodes of
Fuego en la sangre. Eva is a member of Tulane-Newcomb Choir and has sung with the New Orleans Opera in
productions of Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman and Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Having been a vegetarian for
ten years, Eva loves animals, especially her cats Alice and Jesse.
Becca Chilbert is a senior from Gaithersburg, MD, majoring in Latin American Studies and Linguistics.
Becca has longed to travel within Latin America since first hearing Chacha and Salsa music as a kid, and was
privileged and humbled to live in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for a semester this past spring. Becca’s academic
interests have consistently been directed towards humanitarian questions. She has been the project coordinator
for Tulane Habitat for Humanity for many years and this year switched to be the project coordinator for the
Hunger and Homelessness Action Team Tulane. Through experiences planning for Human Trafficking
Awareness Week and interning at the Buenos Aires anti-trafficking organization and safe-house La Alameda,
Becca became increasingly aware and unsettled by the problem of Human Trafficking worldwide. From
different locations and different places in life, we can do different things to combat this ever-present problem.
As a student, Becca hopes to assist by researching, along with other efforts.
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Susie DeLapp grew up in a mud house in the fertile valle norte along the Rio Grande in Los Ranchos de
Albuquerque, Nuevo Mexico. She considers herself culturally Latina. Her interests include language
acquisition, snowboarding, traveling the world, and trying to cook. She also likes dancing all night, music,
festivals, and New Orleans. Recent interest in Haiti and public health has guided her to aspirations of earning
a Masters in Public Health, eventually. First she wants to travel throughout Latin America for just under a
year and perfect her Spanish skills. She will then return to New Orleans to work in AmeriCorps and live and
grow flowers in her garden while applying for graduate school. An ultimate goal of Susie’s is to join
PeaceCorps and serve her time as a citizen of the world for two years. Someday she will likely “settle” in
New Orleans, if she settles.
Kathleen Dunn is a senior from Woodbury, New Jersey double majoring in Latin American Studies and
International Development with a minor in Spanish and a pre-medicine concentration. Her research has
focused primarily on gender roles and social values in Latin America. She is a member of the Peer Health
Advocates of Tulane – whose mission is to educate their fellow students about healthy lifestyles and adjusting
to a college environment. After graduation Kathleen plans to take (at least) a year to travel, get work
experience abroad and get an edge up on her Spanish. She then plans to go to medical school and become an
emergency medicine pediatrician. Her goals are to get her M.D. and work as a physician in developing
nations or for a development agency of public heath.
Jane Esslinger came down to Tulane from Philadelphia to escape morning frosts and cold winters but
decided she wanted to go even farther south to Latin America. Pretending she was porteña, Jane studied
Argentine film among other things in Buenos Aires and traveled throughout the Southern Cone. She misses
empanadas, malbec and chimichurri sauce, but feeds her hunger with vegetables from the Latino Farmers
Cooperative of Louisiana where she worked this past summer. Apart from food her interests include
spending time in grassy areas, buying things from street vendors, and riding her bike. Although she will
graduate in May 2011 with a major in Latin American Studies and minors in Spanish and Psychology don’t
be surprised to see her still bumming around New Orleans as she will be teaching 6-12th grade Spanish
through Teach for America.
Jessica Frankel is a junior at Tulane University majoring in Latin American Studies with minors in Public
Health and Philosophy. Her initial interest in Latin America began as a result of her experiences growing up
in a New York City suburb that is a major destination for Central American migrant workers. Jessica began
learning Spanish at age 10 and became fluent after living abroad in Panama. She has since been working as a
Spanish Tutor and has been employed by the Tulane Tutoring Center for the past 3 years. Her interests
include traveling, languages, community service, social justice, anthropology, philosophy, nature, tea and
yoga. Jessica is also a passionate activist for women’s reproductive healthcare and worker’s rights. Her future
plans include becoming fluent in French and traveling to both the Andes and North Africa.
Emily Gatehouse is a senior from New Hampton, NH. She decided to attend Tulane University based on
their Anthropology department and focus on Latin America. She is now a double major in Latin American
Studies and Anthropology with a minor in Spanish. Spring semester of junior year she studied abroad in
Buenos Aires, Argentina where she had an internship at el Parque de la Memoria. Emily is going to get her
masters in Anthropology from Tulane University through the 4+1 program. After this she hopes to work in
forensic anthropology in Latin America.
Carlos Grover is a senior majoring in Latin American Studies and Political Science. He is from Brasilia,
Brazil and is a fluent speaker of English, Portuguese and Portuñol. Carlos is a volunteer translator for Friends
of MST (Movimento Sem Terra, Landless Movement) and enjoys spending his time playing and watching
soccer. Carlos has coached girl’s soccer at a local high school in New Orleans. Other than Brazil, Carlos has
lived in Belize, the United Kingdom and the United States. After college Carlos plans on moving back to
Brasilia for a few years and possibly teaching English.
Phylicia Martel will graduate this spring with a double major in Latin American Studies and Spanish. Her
interest in Latin America began in high school, where she studied the Cold War’s influence on the region and
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often discussed issues related to the U.S.-Mexico border with an exchange student from Mexico. Phylicia has
spent a short time living with generous host families in Ciudad Juárez and Anthony, New Mexico at the end
of her freshmen year. She has also studied in Madrid, Spain, and was awarded a research grant to study
Galician emigration to Latin America, as a sophomore. Since arriving in New Orleans, she has volunteered as
an English as a Second Language teacher and interned with the Hispanic Apostolate. Most recently, she was
selected to serve as a member of Tulane’s delegation to the Model Organization of American States in
Washington DC. After graduation, Phylicia has plans to work in the non-profit sector in Kampala, Uganda.
Stephanie Moore is a senior from Kansas City, Missouri majoring in Political Science with an Emphasis in
International Relations and Latin American Studies with a Minor in Spanish. Stephanie became interested in
Latin America after studying abroad in Costa Rica the summer after her freshman year, learning about Central
American Politics and Ecology in the rainforests and beaches throughout the country. Her major interests
focus on political and economic policy throughout Latin America and the influence that social and economic
thought throughout different countries and regions tend to have on more progressive law throughout.
Stephanie currently works as a Paralegal for James A. Williams criminal defense firm in Gretna, Louisiana
and hopes to attend law school in the fall to further her study of the Latin America legal system and the
institution of international law.
Abigail Nixon is a junior from Little Rock, Arkansas studying Latin American Studies and possibly Public
Health and Spanish. Abigail’s interest in Cuba (and Latin America in general) started after buying a salsa CD
6 years ago and reading the liner notes, and her high school Spanish teacher encouraged her to further her
studies. After enrolling at Tulane, Abigail decided to declare her major in Latin American Studies. This
summer, she held an internship with the Arkansas Governor’s office, which sparked an interest in working
with the government. She hopes to work in Washington D.C. this summer, and then spend a semester in
Havana, Cuba through Tulane’s study abroad program. After graduation, Abigail plans to travel as much as
possible, learn Portuguese, and eventually begin graduate school after learning more about what she would
like to do.
Monica Peters is a senior pursuing a double major in Latin American Studies and International Development.
Her interest in Latin American Studies was originally sparked growing up in Los Angeles, California where
she frequently encountered diverse subcultures within the Latino community and second-generation Latinos.
During her junior year she studied aboard in both Chile and Argentina, where she began exploring the
migratory movements among Latin Americans, as well as their motivations for leaving their native country
during various historical periods. In January of 2010 she interned with the US embassy in Lima, Peru,
working in the fraud department of the consular section. During her two month assignment she was able to
observe some of the migratory patterns that were unique to Peru, and the impact of the US government’s
immigration policies on the country. Monica will graduate in the Spring of 2010 and hopes to continue her
study of Latin America and migration in grad school.
Davita Petty is a Senior double majoring in Public Health and Latin American Studies. Originally from
Minnesota, her Latin American interest was ignited in kindergarten where she began twelve years of Spanish
Immersion education. Davita has been pleased with the ability to continue this interest at Tulane University,
focusing her major on the study of identity in the Caribbean. She further explored this interest by studying for
a semester at the University of Havana with the Tulane University study abroad program to Cuba. Davita
feels that much of her connection to Latin America has come from the experience of living in New Orleans, a
city she very much feels is a cultural extension of the Caribbean. She hopes to continue to intertwine
humanities and social science in her future career by advocating a greater attention to culture in the creation
of Public health interventions and policy.
Rebecca Pike is a senior majoring in Latin American Studies, Portuguese and Spanish with a concentration in
Brazilian studies. She has volunteered her time as a tutor and student teacher assistant for English as a Second
Language with the Hispanic Apostolate Charities in New Orleans, and worked as a professional translator
with an international manufacturing company in Chicago. Ms. Pike was a member of the Multi-Cultural
Affairs Committee at Wall Residential College and was Vice President for the Tulane University Latin
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American Studies Organization. In spring 2010, Ms. Pike spent six months studying at the Pontifícia
Universidade Católica de São Paulo in São Paulo, Brazil. While a student there, she has given presentations
on a variety of topics, including the usage of Brazilian slang in modern society, contemporary terrorism in
Latin America, and customs of north-eastern Brazilian youth in São Paulo. Ms. Pike currently holds dualcitizenship from the United States and Brazil.
Eric Schwartz is senior from Philadelphia P.A. majoring in Latin American Studies with a Public Health and
Jewish Studies minor. Having played soccer all his life, Eric’s interest in Latin America originates from an
interest in soccer that he shared with the Latin community in Philadelphia. His youth team was coached by,
and largely comprised of kids of Andean background. These exposures lead to a fascination with the people
and the culture of Latin America. To further his interest, Eric and his childhood friend who is Puerto Rican by
heritage taught English at a Spanish school in South Philadelphia. Additionally, Eric has traveled to a number
of different Latin American areas, including an extended stay in Mexico, Cuba, and an experience living in
huts in the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador. Although Eric is applying to medical school and has a background
in science, his interest in Latin America is focused primarily on Caribbean and Central America politics.
Jessie Yoste is majoring in Latin American Studies with a minor in Spanish. Her interests in Latin America
surfaced during her sophomore year at Tulane, after she discovered her tendency to pursue classes within the
Latin America Studies department. Jessie developed a fascination with the culture and peoples described in
her coursework, promising to explore the region through a study abroad program. In the fall of 2009, Jessie
received her first passport stamp in Chile, where she spent the semester at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de
Valparaiso, studying religious studies and literature. Upon her return to the United States, Jessie began classes
in Portuguese to feed her newly discovered wanderlust, and expand her credentials in relation to Latin
American Studies. After getting a taste of the local flavor during her study abroad, Jessie returned to Chile in
the summer of 2010 to pound the pavement in attempts to procure a job, an act she plans to repeat after
graduation in May 2011 (location to be determined).
Rachel Young is a double major in Latin American Studies and International Development. She has always
been interested in international studies, but she became particularly interested in Latin America after many
family trips to the region. After taking LAST 101, she was hooked with the program at Tulane. She spent
one year studying in Valparaíso, Chile and immersing herself in the Chilean culture. She even got to see firsthand what emergency response is like in Latin America after she felt the ground shake in the Chilean
earthquake in February! During her time abroad, she also traveled around South America learning as much as
she could. She has had professional experience in a wide variety of vocations ranging from an internship with
the World Trade Center in New Orleans, a summer job with Americorps running a camp for children in New
Orleans and teaching English with the Hispanic Apostolate in New Orleans as well as abroad in Chile. She is
uncertain what her future plans will be following graduation, but she hopes they will involve Latin America in
some form or another.
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