College of Letters & Science
Recent reporting from the New York Times and others has cast light on extremely concerning reports of sexual assault, sexual abuse and sexual harassment perpetrated by Chicano union and civil rights leader César Chávez toward his co-leader Dolores Huerta, Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas in their girlhood, and other women in the farmworker movement. As …
In the wake of the New York Times story that revealed reports of sexual assault, abuse, and harassment by César Chávez, CLS faculty member Armando Ibarra is helping press outlets understand the story’s impact and community responses. In an interview with the Associated Press, Prof. Ibarra noted that the UFW’s 1960s-era victories made the organization …
Is Puerto Rico the most important place in the world? Jorell Meléndez-Badillo thinks there’s a case to be made. On March 17, the CLS affiliate faculty member shared his thoughts about the archipelago’s influence on global popular culture with Carlos Dávalos, guest host of “A Public Affair” on community radio station WORT. He noted that, …
Anthropologist Falina Enriquez was recently named one of 24 winners of the University’s Vilas Associates Competition. The award recognizes new and ongoing research of the highest quality and significance. Recipients are chosen competitively by the divisional Research Committees on the basis of a detailed research proposal. Funds associated with the award will support a two-year …
A recent feature story in the Badger Herald on the relationship between literature and politics of immigration drew on an interview with CLS Director Theresa Delgadillo, a Vilas Distinguished Professor of English and Chicanx/e & Latinx/e Studies. The article noted that fictional stories can shed light on larger truths of immigrant experiences and the realities of …
You could say February has been busy for Jorell Meléndez-Badillo. A CLS affiliate faculty member, Prof. Meléndez-Badillo recently made headlines by contributing historical vignettes to the superstar Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny’s recent album “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” (translated as “I Should Have Taken More Pictures”). When Bad Bunny was tapped to perform the 2026 …
When the folks behind NPR’s “1A” show needed context for a story about what 2026 holds for Puerto Rico, they turned to CLS core faculty member Aurora Santiago Ortiz. In a wide-ranging conversation that aired on January 27th, Santiago Ortiz shared her thoughts with host Jenn White and fellow guest Alana Casanova-Burgess, the host of …
CLS core faculty member Armando Ibarra and affiliate faculty member Sara McKinnon recently shared their thoughts on immigration enforcement with the hosts of WORT community radio’s A Public Affair. On Wednesday, Prof. McKinnon and host Ali Muldrow reviewed the second Trump Administration’s year of mass deportations, noting that the speed and scale of current enforcement efforts …
In December of 2025, the Modern Language Association awarded its sixteenth Prize in United States Latina and Latina and Chicana and Chicano Literary and Cultural Studies to CLS Director Theresa Delgadillo for her 2024 book Geographies of Relation: Diasporas and Borderlands in the Americas. The Association’s press release notes that Geographies of Relation “masterfully combines …
The Chicanx & Latinx Studies Program proudly shares that Professor Armando Ibarra, former CLS Director, has been appointed by Governor Tony Evers to the Wisconsin Governor’s Council on Migrant Labor as a migrant representative. His term runs from November 26, 2025, through July 1, 2026. The Council brings together employer, migrant, and legislative representatives to …