The Mexican Lecture Series

Coordinators: Regina Cortina, Pablo Piccato

Mexico is undergoing a period of rapid change in its economy, political system and society. This series of talks will feature Mexican contemporary events and current scholarship. Its goal is to stimulate interest on Mexican themes among the Columbia community, reaching also multiple audiences in New York City.

Mexican nationals are the fastest growing Latin American nationality in the city’s population. Although relatively recent, they constitute a diverse group in terms of age, gender and social background. In spite of the central importance of Mexico to contemporary perceptions of  migration to the United States, and to the demographic profile of cities like New York, public discussions about Mexican contemporary issues continues to be dominated by a limited number of received notions, lagging behind those of other US urban centers and regions where populations of Mexican origin traditionally have been a greater demographic and political force. This lecture series seeks to stimulate and encourage further research and discussion of these themes at Columbia. In this regard, it will reinforce the impact of the collaboration between ILAS and Mexican institutions like Conacyt, and lay the groundwork for the establishment of a Mexican Center within the Institute.

The specific focus of the lecture series this year will be migration and education. These two themes are intrinsically related. Immigrants constitute a large, albeit neglected part of the student population in the city. Education in Mexico is, in turn, one of the factors contributing to migration. Out of this thematic focus, the lecture series will invite researchers whose work does not deal with Mexico but addresses comparable cases, mainly in Latin America. Education and migration will not be exclusive themes, either: the lecture series will benefit from the expertise on Mexico among visiting scholars and faculty at Columbia and other universities in the area.

Download the Spring 2009 Schedule of Events.