The University of Massachusetts Amherst invites applications and nominations for a visionary scholar of distinction to serve as the inaugural holder of the Endowed Chair in the Study of Nonviolent Direct Action and Civil Resistance, a new faculty position focused on the scientific study of nonviolent direct action and civil resistance.

Nonviolent direct action refers to strategies and activities designed to achieve social and political change without the use of violence.  Examples of nonviolent direct action include collective organizing, social movements, protests, sit-ins, vigils, consciousness raising, and other forms of civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance.  Proponents of nonviolent direct action recognize the need for active struggle to foster social and political change and use nonviolent approaches as alternatives to passive acceptance of oppression and inequality, or the use of violent confrontation, to achieve social and political goals.  The activities of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. (and others like them) provide good examples of the kinds of nonviolent direct action on which the chairholder should focus his/her scientific work.

The chairholder will provide national/international leadership to the study of this critical topic.

The chairholder may be from any discipline, but her/his research methodology must be scientific and focused on large-scale social phenomena

The appointment will be at the full or associate professor level.  The departmental home(s) of the appointee will be determined based on the successful candidate’s scholarly expertise.  The position will begin as soon as a qualified candidate has been found.

The candidate is expected to become an integral member of the Psychology of Peace and Violence Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and should be interested in interdisciplinary collaboration, scholarship, and training of graduate students on issues involving peace, conflicts of interest, nonviolent direct action, and civil resistance.  The Psychology of Peace and Violence Program adds to scientific knowledge of how to resolve conflict between
groups, promotes reconciliation, and builds peace through cooperation (www.umass.edu/peacepsychology).

Beyond her/his primary affiliation with the Psychology of Peace and Violence Program, the chairholder will find many other supportive colleagues here at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) and within the wider region.  For example, at UMass Amherst, the chairholder may affiliate with the Development and Peacebuilding Program of the Political Economy Research Institute, the Social Inequality and Justice Initiative of the Center for Public

Policy and Administration, the Institute for Holocaust, Genocide, and Memory Studies, the Feinberg Papers Project, and/or the W.E.B. Du Bois Center (It is a university-wide research center that is administratively housed in the Du Bois Library and organized around our holding the Du Bois Papers).

QUALIFICATIONS: a Ph.D. and a proven record as a scholar of the scientific study of peace, non-violent direct action, and civil resistance as well as exceptional promise to serve as a national/international leader in advancing this study at UMass Amherst and beyond are required; a proven record of inclusive and multi-cultural skills in teaching, research, and/or service is strongly preferred.

RANK AND SALARY: Commensurate with experience and qualifications.

NOMINATIONS AND APPLICATIONS: Review of applications will begin on September 17, 2013 but the committee will continue to accept applications until the position has been  filled.  Applications comprising a cover letter expressing interest and describing research program, a vitae and a list of at least three references should be sent to:

Kelly Smiaroski at ksmiaroski@provost.umass.edu or

Kelly Smiaroski, Office of the Provost, 373 Whitmore
Administration Building, University of Massachusetts, 181 President’s Avenue, Amherst, MA  01003-9313.

Electronic submissions strongly preferred.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer.  It is strongly committed to increasing the diversity of faculty, students, and curriculum, and particularly encourages applications from women and minorities.

Great news! As a result of Dr. Norma E. Cantú nomination, Verónica Castillo Salas has received an NEA National Heritage Fellowship for 2013. What a great honor to have her reside in this beautiful city of San Antonio, Texas. Her contribution speaks to the affluence of our artistic capital!

Felicidades Verónica de parte de MALCS!!!!

Click here for the Official Announcement

At this year’s Summer Institute, we will elect officers for four positions on the organization’s Executive Committee: chairperson elect, treasurer, recording secretary, membership coordinator. We will also be electing three at-large representatives for the Coordinating Committee. With the exception of the Chairperson-elect, who serves a three-year term (Chairperson-elect, Chair, Ex-Officio), all elected officers serve two-year terms.

We invite all members to participate in the elections this year and to consider running for office. MALCS needs your energy, talent, and skills! Given the considerable leadership experience among our membership, we hope that elections will showcase this wealth.

Currently, our Nominations Committee is composing a slate of candidates for the election. Members may also self-nominate. Below, please find descriptions for each of the positions up for election.

If you have any questions, you may contact any member of the Nominations Committee (Ella Diaz, Brenda Sendejo, Rita Urquijo-Ruiz, Monica F. Torres, Lupe Gallegos-Diaz) at: nominations@malcs.org

If you are interested in running for one of these positions, please submit a statement of interest to Nominations Committee at nominations@malcs.org by Monday, July 1, 2013. The statement should be one-paragraph introduction (no more than 250 words) and should articulate your interest in and qualifications for serving MALCS in this position.

Candidate statements will be distributed to members in advance of the Business Meeting at the 2013 Summer Institute at OSU.

MALCS Executive and Coordinating Committees: Position Descriptions

Chairperson-elect

Election to this position means a three-year commitment on the MALCS Executive Committee–as chair-elect, chair, and ex-officio. The Chairperson-elect shall

• support the chair in the implementation of the policies and procedures of the organization;
• assume the duties of the Chairperson, in the absence of the Chairperson;
• in consultation with the webjefa and communications team, be responsible for making recommendations to the Executive Committee on editorial policy, publishing and functionality of the MALCS’ digital presence and for working with webjefa and communications team to assure implementation of said decisions;
• be responsible for promoting MALCS’ digital publications and recruiting writers for those publications;
• call a meeting of the Executive Committee for the purpose of determining whether the Chairperson is unwilling or unable to perform the duties of the Chair; such a meeting must be called in writing with no less than five (5) days notice, and only when the Chair-Elect has a good cause to believe that the Chairperson is unable or unwilling to perform the duties of the Chair;
• assume the duties of Chairperson if so directed by the Executive Committee;
• assume the office of Chairperson when the Chairperson’s term expires.

Treasurer

The Treasurer shall

• in collaboration with the Administrative Coordinator, regularly review, report, and reconcile financial documents and statements for the organization;
• in consultation with the Administrative Coordinator, advise and consult with the Executive Committee regarding budgetary constraints, financial policy, audits,  development strategies and activities;
• make recommendations on all routine and non-routine financial matters;
• review any items or requests with financial implications that are made to the National Office, Executive Committee and/or Coordinating Committee;
• chair the Funds Development Committee;
• in the absence of Chair, Chair-Elect, the Ex-Officio, the treasurer will facilitate meetings.

Recording Secretary

The Recording Secretary shall

• keep the minutes of all regular and special meetings of the Executive Committee, Coordinating Committee, and national business meeting;
• distribute minutes to the Executive Committee and the membership within (30) days after adjournment of each meeting;
• in collaboration with the Chair, prepare the agenda for all meetings;
• compile, organize, and deliver all documents to Administrative Coordinator and to the MALCS archives at UCLA;
• collect and keep contact information on chapters, caucuses, officers and awards.

Membership Coordinator

The Membership Coordinator shall

• conduct a yearly membership drive before the Summer Institute;
• in collaboration the Communications Committee and Webjefa, be responsible for making recommendations to the Executive Committee on the uses and functionality of the listservs and email lists and other social media;
• be responsible for maintaining moderation of public and member listservs;
• work in consultation with webjefa to create and maintain the content of the MALCS website’s membership section;
• serve as a liaison between MALCS Executive Committee and the Historian;
• serve as a liaison between MALCS Executive Committee and chapters including soliciting reports and chapter activities for publication on MALCS website.

At-large Representatives

Representatives shall

• be elected at the Summer Institute and serve two-year terms with staggered start dates and end dates to ensure office continuity;
• attend the Summer Institute;
• attend meetings of the Coordinating Committee scheduled at the Summer Institute;
• recommend and organize workshops, panels, and themes for future institutes;
• identify pertinent topics in relation to their special interest and regions;
• prepare, report, and submit reports to Secretary;
• submit announcements and items of interests from their region for publication on the MALCS website or other digital venues;
• elected at-large representatives will train incoming at-large representatives in duties;
• keep the chair and recording secretary informed of current contact information.

Dr. Luzma Umpierre-Herrera will be featured reading from her new book “I’m
Still Standing: Thirty Years of Poetry” at the following venues and dates:

Friday May 17th at De Paul University Student Union, Room 312, 2550 N
Sheffield 6-8pm

Saturday May 18th as part of the Butterfly Poetry Project at Calles y
Suenos, 1900 S Carpenter, 2-4pm

Saturday May 18th, En Las Tablas Performing Arts Center, 4111 W Armitage
Ave. 1st Floor, 7-9pm

All three events are free and open to the public. Books will be available
for purchase and signing.

Dr. Luz María Umpíerre-Herrera will read from her newest complete work,
I’m Still Standing: Treinta Años de Poesía/Thirty Years of Poetry. “I’m
Still Standing…is complex, interdisciplinary in scope, and a must read for
students of Latin American Studies, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Transgender Studies, Puerto Rican Studies, and Women Studies, just to name
a few, as well as for those who have an insatiable thirst for eloquent
poetry… Once you start reading this poetic memoir, you will not be able to
put it down. Umpierre’s poetry is original, absolutely exquisite!”
–Dr.Cheryl Keyes, Professor of Folklore & Ethnomusicology,
UCLA
Don’t miss the rare opportunity to experience the brilliant work of this
iconic figure of twentieth century Puerto Rican literature.

These events are sponsored by the Center for Latino Research and the
Women’s Center, De Paul University, The Butterfly Poetry Project, Casa de
Cultura Calles y Suenos, En Las Tablas Performing Arts Center, Voces
Primeras and the LBTQ Giving Council of the Chicago Foundation for Women.

For more information: 773-998-8902

The Academic Article: A Writing Workshop, facilitated by
Prof. Karen Mary Davalos, former editor of Chicana/Latina Studies.

BOTTOM LINE: The deadline for submission for the Academic Article is postmark June 15, 2013.

WHEN: July 17 at 2:00-4:00 p.m. and July 19 at 8:00-10:00 a.m.
Participants may arrive on Tuesday July 16, but must contact the Site Committee to arrange housing.

WHAT FOR: Feminist collaboration for publication!
The Writing Workshop is one of the Journal’s formal methods of creating a feminist editorial process. Following the spirit and mission of MALCS, the journal’s editors offer the workshop in order to energize through collaboration, programmatically link scholarship and leadership, and institutionalize mentorship. Participants bring their work-in-progress and depart with clearrecommendations for meeting internal criteria of Chicana/Latina Studies, specific direction about revision, andfirst-hand knowledge about our feminist editorial production process.

To create an intellectual community, prior to the workshop, participants read and commented on the material of the other writers. Attending both two-hoursessions (the first on Weds. July 17, and the second on Friday July 19) is required.
WHY: It really works!
Past participants who have been published in the journal are: Dora Ramirez-Dhoor (5:1), Rosalia Solorzano Torres (5:1), Ann Marie Leimer (5:2), Patricia Trullijo (6:1), Carmelita “Rosie” Castañeda (7:2), Marivel Danielson (7:2), M. Bianet Castellanos (8: 1 & 2), Rosa Furumoto (8: 1 & 2), Irene Mata (10:2), Ella Diaz (11:1), Marci R. McMahon (11:1) and more!

WHO: The editors encourage applications from writers at all professional levels, including tenured or mid-career professors.
Due to the goals of the workshop, we cannot accept submissions of dissertation chapters. Dissertation writers are not suited for the workshops since the dissertation style, genre, and goals are distinct from those of the academic article. Ideally, graduate schools and faculty should offer the type of mentorship offered in MALCS Writing Workshops. Facilitators of the workshopstrongly urge dissertation writers to demand, negotiate, and mobilize for such support.

HOW MANY: The workshop has space for 8 participants, who must register for the Summer Institute and be current MALCS members.

FINE PRINT: Acknowledge the labor of others.
Although participation does not guarantee publication, the information and experience facilitates the submission and double-blind-peerreview process. Our track record speaks for itself—see above partial list of workshop participants who have been published in the journal.

Although MALCS supports the publication activities of its members, it cannot misappropriate the labor of its editors. Therefore, participants are required to sign an agreement that guarantees the journal’s Right of First Review of the material developed through the workshop. The agreement allows authors to compensate participants and editors for their labor and guarantees that the author will formally submit the work to Chicana/Latina Studies for consideration of publication. It also requires the author to acknowledge the assistance of the participants if the work is published elsewhere. The Right of First Review is understood as an aspect of feminist practice, accountability, and leadership and scholarship.

HOW TO APPLY FOR
The Academic Article: A Writing Workshop

DEADLINE: Postmark of hardcopy package: June 15, 2013.

WHERE: Postal and email of documents to

Dr. Karen Mary Davalos, Prof. and Chair
Chicana/o Studies Dept.
Loyola Marymount University
One LMU Dr., University Hall, Ste 4400
Los Angeles, CA 90045
kdavalos@lmu.edu

WHAT TO SEND:
Please submit a cover letter describing the project and the author’s goals for publication (audience, timeline, etc.), the author’s contact information for various media and technology or the lead author’s contact information, and one copy of the scholarly article of 5,000 words or 25 pages (not including tables, notes, or references). All submissions should conform to the journal’s style and the text must be double-spaced.

Also send the package via email.

To apply for the scholarship, you must:

• Be a current MALCS member

• Submit a letter of interest and why you are applying to the 2013 Summer Institute scholarship,
• One letter of recommendation—one from the advisor and/or from a MALCS member in good/current standing.
• Attach a current copy of your transcripts for students (cumulative GPA of at least 2.57) and for graduates students/others – resume and/or cv.
• Include a name of paper and/or workshop title that you will present, with evidence of and travel arrangements to Ohio.

All materials and questions should be sent to:

MALCS Executive Administrator, Lupe Gallegos-Diaz at:   lupe@malcs.org

Deadline:  May 30, 2013.

If selected, you will be notified no later than June 6, 2013.

Call for Proposals for the Anthology

Bronze Womanhood: 

Chicana Feminisms, Activism, and Leadership in the Chicano Movement

Edited by Maylei Blackwell, Maria Cotera, Dionne Espinoza,  and Linda Garcia-­Merchant

We  are  soliciting  new  essays  on  Chicana  feminist  organizing,  activism,  and  leadership  in  the 1960s and 1970s for a co-­‐edited volume, Bronze Womanhood. The volume will feature new scholarly essays on Chicana feminist praxis in its early years, as well as personal essays by some of the women her were active in social justice work during the period covered by the volume. We welcome scholarly essays that address one or more of the following questions:

• How have Chicana feminists and activists developed their own theories and praxes as a result of their participation in multiple movement spaces, and how has that experience of multiplicity shaped the political subject of Chicana feminism?
• How  have  Chicana  feminist  activists  analyzed  their  work  and  its  relationship  to  “Anglo feminism” and/or other women of color feminisms?
• How does new scholarly work and accounts by Chicana feminists revise a well-­‐worn narrative that constructs Chicana feminism as “growing out of” the Chicano movement or as a “delayed” form of feminism in the Second Wave? How do these accounts demonstrate  the  extent  to  which  the  movement’s  key  figures  and  organizational projects emerged from a variety of precursor contexts and struggles and also link to other movements?
• What  are  some  of  the  histories  that  have  not  been  told  about  Chicana  feminist organizing and leadership? For example, the history of Chicana lesbians who may not have identified within the construct of “out” sexuality during that time frame but who nevertheless made their mark as committed activists in the Chicano movement?
• While the Houston conference of 1971 is marked as a key moment in the development of early Chicana feminisms during which major conflicts and dialogue emerged, are there other areas in which conflict and collaboration were evident and how did these play out?
• How does the gathering of oral histories and archives by a new generation of scholars build upon previous documentation, fill gaps, and also question accepted accounts of organizational experiences, political mobilization, and women’s collectivities?

Among the essays we hope to include in the volume, are pieces on individual Chicana feminists and their bodies of work (writing, art, activism, leadership, performance) perhaps framed as a biographies or political histories; pieces on Chicana archives and the politics of collection, the construction of histories through the archives, and the purpose and need for these recoveries; reflections by key individual Chicana feminists in excerpted memoir form, position papers about their work, critiques of the existing narratives, or new accounts of their work; accounts of Chicana feminist formations and collectivities that have not previously been studied or written about in depth in places such as San Diego, the Bay Area, Seattle, Houston, Chicago, Tucson, Albuquerque, and understudied regional locations such as the Midwest, the South, the East Coast and the Northwest,  as well as work on national organizational efforts such as Comision Femenil; explorations of various media and the use of film, theatre, or other formats for re-­‐ presenting Chicana feminist histories; the role of spirituality in the development of Chicana feminist discourse, and, more particularly, the organizing and theoretical work elaborated by Chicanas within institutional religious organizations.

We welcome contributions in various forms; from more traditional scholarly articles, to memoir and personal essays, to document curation and analysis.

If you would like to be part of this project, please submit an abstract proposal (max. 500 words) stating the tentative title of your article, its main arguments, and an overview of organizations, key figures, and data you will be drawing from.

 Proposals may be sent via email to bronzewomanhood@gmail.com  Deadline: June 15, 2013

By MALCS Executive Committee: Mónica Torres, Theresa Delgadillo, Rita Urquijo-­Ruiz, Ester Hernandez, Marivel Danielson, Judith Flores Carmona, Lupe Gallegos Diaz.

Early in 2013, the MALCS Executive Committee accepted Susana Gallardo’s resignation as Webjefa. The Executive Committee of MALCS would like to take this opportunity not only to express our appreciation for Susana’s many contributions to to promoting the mission and goals of MALCS in her fifteen years of service but also to honor her for creating a distinct digital presence for MALCS by awarding her a life-­time membership in MALCS.

Susana took over the administration of our organization’s website in the late 1990s from Kathy Blackmer Reyes, who created the first MALCS webpage. When Susana became responsible for the site, she created an entirely new site with important subdivisions dedicated to Leadership, History, Summer Institute and our Journal. As Webjefa Susana secured the domain names and server space for MALCS and related websites to exist, and three years ago created an entirely new online “.org” architecture for us and migrated our website from the previous “.net” architecture. Before that, however, Susana created the dynamic “blog” feature of the organization’s website, where members shared news as well as CFPs and job ads, commented on current events and posted interesting news from other websites. Susana was the motor behind this feature of the site which our members quickly became accustomed to reading and checking and which undoubtedly contributed to the dynamism and stability of MALCS. In recent years, Susana created a MALCS presence on Facebook now largely managed by MALCS Secretary Judith Flores Carmona and Chair Elect Rita Urquijo-­Ruiz (where the job ads and call for papers that members share with each other have migrated) and assisted in developing the Mujeres Talk site focused on original research and commentary. Both of these recent developments, in which Susana played an important part, have also expanded member participation in the organization. Susana spearheaded MALCS technology initiatives such as MALCSmail, an email service for members on the Google email platform that she also oversaw and administered. At the Summer Institutes in recent years, Susana reached out to MALCS members to join in blogging for the website with a “how-­to” workshop.

When she began as Webjefa, Susana was a graduate student in the Religious Studies Department at Stanford University, where she completed her Ph.D. in 2012. On the way, she joined the staff at San Jose State University and became a mother. Between dissertation research and writing, motherhood and university teaching, Susana managed to find time to make an absolutely critical contribution to growing and promoting MALCS: building a strong MALCS digital face online. The stability and strength of MALCS as well as our ability to continue to attract new members and to carry out our mission and goals owes much to the outstanding work of outgoing Webjefa Susana Gallardo. Susana, we thank you!

REPRINTED FROM THE HUFFINGTON POST, APRIL 1, 2013

By Chon A. Noriega

In the spring of 1986 I dropped out of graduate school at the University of Illinois at Chicago, packed up my belongings, and drove 2,400 miles to East Palo Alto so that my then-wife could enroll in graduate school at Stanford University. I had already fulfilled my one dream in life at that time, which was to teach a section of freshman English. Why I wanted to do such I thing I do not know, but I did it, and I was happy. No one else in my family had ever been to college, per se…. Well, my father did live in the locker room at the University of New Mexico during one semester of classes before opting for the army. Then he married, started a family, and continued his education while working full time.

That first night in East Palo Alto, as I slept on the floor avant le moving van, the earth shook … but it did not swallow me. So the next morning I hit the streets, looking for work. I quickly found the one job I truly despise, even though I have returned to it again and again. I became the cut-in man on a paint crew. For those of you who don’t know, the cut-in man is the FNG who is handed a three-inch brush and directed to paint all the corners and trim, making things a breeze for the person who rolls out the rest of the wall or ceiling. I had worked in heat treatment factories, restaurant kitchens, parking garages, and even a public relations firm, all settings that demand rapid movement and a tolerance for temperatures that can top 100 degrees. But if Satan has a special corner of Hell for some sinners, no doubt there is an FNG crouched down beside the baseboard, cutting in before they arrive. That was me. And I was the worse cut-in man in the world.

By fall I found myself re-evaluating my future. I wasn’t sure what prospects the university offered — I mean, I had already taught, and once that’s done, what else is there to do in academia? Nevertheless, I trekked to the central administration building at Stanford University, seeking some guidance. I still believed in the kindness of authorities. I found myself sitting across from an imposing figure — you know, the type who can throw you into profound doubt about the most basic aspects of your very existence by raising an eyebrow. I had just met Cecilia Preciado Burciaga. She held many titles at Stanford: assistant to the president and advisor on Chicano affairs, associate dean of graduate studies, senior associate provost and associate dean and development officer for student affairs. She was the highest-ranking Latino administrator on campus. But the titles and rank hardly explain her forceful and hands-on commitment to increasing the number of Chicanos in graduate education. Without her unflinching belief in my rather ill-defined abilities, without her down-in-the-trenches sense of strategy, I would not have been accepted into a Ph.D. program at Stanford University for the following year. She made things real for me. She pointed to goals beyond my too-easily-realized dream of teaching freshman English.

But Cecilia also pointed to the magical. “You should meet my husband,” she said, “he’s an artist.” What I remember now is something I did not appreciate back then: I spent a lot of time in Tony’s studio at Casa Zapata, the Chicano-themed dormitory, where he and Cecilia were the resident fellows. Tony was multi-talented, finding success as a muralist, graphic artist, humorist, and founding member of the comedy group Culture Clash; he was also the author of numerous books of poetry, essays, and dichos. I also spent time with Cecilia in her office. She made things happen, and she offered perspective. Cecilia and Tony were role models on many levels, not least as a couple committed to — and living — gender equality. They were, as Tony liked to say, a mixed marriage: Tony was from Texas, un tejano, and Cecilia … well, she was from California…. If they could work it out, there was hope for the rest of us. Back then being a Chicano graduate student at Stanford was not easy, especially insofar as we negotiated between our commitment to social equity for our community and the upward mobility a place like Stanford helped us secure as individuals.

By 1989 I was seriously prepared to drop out and return to being a cut-in man full time — my graduate stipend had never allowed me to give it up altogether. It was at this point that I met Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, who showed me a different model for participating in academia, and Roberto Trujillo, who paid me a whopping ten dollars an hour to follow that model as an archival assistant for the Mexican American Collection at Stanford’s library. By 1991 I was a Ph.D. and had landed my first job at the University of New Mexico. Looking back 22 years later as a full professor at a major research university, the story of what it means for me to have earned a Ph.D. from Stanford necessarily starts with Cecilia and Tony Burciaga. It is the people, and not the institution, that make a difference.

Cecilia, born in Pomona in 1945 to Mexican immigrants, passed away on Monday, March 25, after a seven-month battle with lung cancer. Tony had passed away in 1996. Both their children are teachers. Artist and educator Amalia Mesa-Bains, who once worked closely with Cecilia, puts her impact in historical context: “She was a person of leadership in the Latino community long before it became fashionable. If things were unjust, unfair, not right, Cecilia would take up the cause and she wouldn’t back down until the problem was fixed. I would consider her one of the people who most embodied the movement toward justice.”

They say that no good deed goes unpunished. That is the price of a commitment to social change. In 1994 Stanford provost Condoleezza Rice laid off Cecilia and closed the crucial position she had occupied for two decades. In 1995 Cecilia became a founding dean for student affairs at the new California State University campus in Monterey Bay. In 2002 the university settled a lawsuit over racial discrimination brought by Cecilia and two other Latino staff members. The settlement included establishing a $1.5 million scholarship fund for low-income students from California’s Central Coast.

Cecilia was there when I walked into her office seeking guidance, and she firmly and kindly directed me toward a lifelong calling years before I knew it was mine. I was not alone in receiving this kind of help from her; I was one among hundreds. Today those of us who were mentored by Cecilia carry on her legacy in seeking educational access for all students. To use Tony’s words in Spilling the Beans: Lotería Chicana (Joshua Odell Editions, 1995, page 101), we are her chameleons: “As we move from one world to the other we exchange colors, ideas, symbols and words in order to fit, to relate and to survive. The result is a prismatic iridescence when the difference of colors play on each other, like a rainbow after a rainstorm in the desert. We are chameleons.” Cecilia Preciado Burciaga, Presente!

Word Images: A Norma Elia Cantú Critical Reader

Editor: Gabriella Gutiérrez y Muhs, Seattle University, author/editor of:

Communal Feminisms: Chicanas, Chilenas and Cultural Exile (Lexington Books, 2007).

Presumed Incompetent: The Intersections of Race and Class for Women in Academia (Utah State University Press, 2012).

Rebozos de Palabras: An Helena María Viramontes Critical Reader (University of Arizona Press, 2013).

Although ethnography is defined many times as “the study of the Other,” in Norma E. Cantú it becomes the study of the subjective self and the others who relationally define the self.

Author Norma E. Cantú’s writing describes a border culture not only because it speaks Spanish, is bilingual and bicultural, and is mostly located in Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, the U.S. and México, but also because it depicts a bicognitive reality. Sara García has pointed out that Cantú writes about “the border from within the border,” what Mary Louise Pratt calls “the contact zone.” In her work, Norma E. Cantú depicts the internal, moral, and linguistic borders that Chican@s cross continually throughout their lives in various and diverse manners.

With its mixture of writing and orality, past and present, all mediated by memory, Canícula: Snapshots of a Girlhood en la Frontera, Cantú’s first groundbreaking novel, could also be read as testimonial literature if defined by Margaret Randall as “the possibility to reconstruct the truth.”

We invite submissions on Norma E. Cantú’s oeuvre and vision, including but not limited to her criticism, folklore, theory, and literature, as well as her newspaper articles. We welcome academic papers about Canícula: Snapshots of a Girlhood en la Frontera and all other works authored by Norma Elia Cantú, including poetry, short stories, opinion pieces, etcetera.

Please send submissions via email by June 1^st, 2013 to: casteing@yahoo.com, especially if it is a heavy document, or a lighter document to: gutierg@seattleu.edu

The manuscript should follow MLA style and be no more than 6, 000 words (about 25 pages excluding bibliography and notes).

As part of your submission, include a brief (75 words) biographical note that includes: name, institutional affiliation and areas of expertise.

 ACCEPTANCES WILL BE ANNOUNCED BY MONDAY,  July 18^TH, 2O13