USU's Tanner Symposium Explores Latino Contributions to U.S. Culture

Every other year the Tanner Symposium at Utah State University brings together members of the academic and public communities to discuss public issues. A hot topic this year is the public concern on immigration.

With that in mind, the organizing committee selected the 2008 symposium theme, “Celebración: Latino Contributions to U.S. Culture.” The topic was chosen by a group of American studies faculty who wanted to look at the positive aspects of immigration in the West. The symposium will be held on the USU campus April 2-4 with most events held in the Eccles Conference Center Auditorium.

 

“The symposium is directed toward a general audience,” said the symposium director and English department faculty member Melody Graulich. “I hope we all come away with an increased understanding of the role immigrants have played in U.S. history and will continue to play in the future.”

 

The Tanner Symposium is hosted by the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. It is funded in part by the Utah Humanities Council.

 

As always, the symposium brings brilliant academic discussion and ideas to USU, but this year’s theme will broaden the scope of anticipated audience members to include high school students. The aim is to boost USU’s appeal to students getting ready to go to college, said Graulich.

 

Latino culture has been woven into all aspects of popular culture, film, poetry and the arts in general. This year’s symposium highlights them all.

 

One of this year’s presenters is Luis Valdez, a playwright, writer and film director who is regarded as the “Dean of Chicano playwriting.” He wrote and directed the films Zoot Suit and La Bamba, both nominated for Golden Globe Awards in the “Best Musical Picture Category.” His films have been playing at the Merrill-Cazier Library throughout February and March. He is featured in several presentations April 2 and 3. There will also be a performance of his play No Saco Nada de la Escuela, directed by USU theater graduate Lanny Langston Wednesday, April 2, at 3:30 p.m. in the Eccles Conference Center auditorium.

 

Other Latino contributions that will be highlighted include remarks by Los Angeles Times reporter Sonia Nazario. Nazario won the Pulitzer Prize in 2003 for her multi-part series Enrique’s Journey about a young Honduran boy who risked his life to travel alone to the United States to find his mother. Nazario appears on the final night of the symposium, Friday, April 4, at 7 p.m. in the Eccles Conference Center auditorium.

 

A roundup of the 21 presenters at the symposium includes Jim Brown of the University of Arizona Library’s Southwest Folklore Center discussing the traditional arts of Tucson’s American-Mexican community. Traditional folk musicians Anastacio and Elisa Castillo, known as The Rio Bravo Trio, have sung together for 25 years and will bring their unique experience and skill to the symposium.

 

The film “…and the earth did not swallow him” will be shown Thursday, April 3, at 7:30 p.m. at the Logan Art Cinema, 785 North Main St., Logan, followed by a discussion with Latina writer Marta Sanchez and the film’s producer Paul Espinosa.

 

“Twenty-one presenters will be involved in the three-day symposium,” Graulich said. “All are exceptionally accomplished in their field and will bring a rich flavor of culture and experience to Utah State and the symposium this year.”

 

Unless otherwise noted on the schedule, all events will take place in the Eccles Conference Center auditorium. All events are free and open to the public.

 

For more information about the 2008 presenters, as well as a complete schedule of events, visit the Tanner Symposium’s Web site, or contact Diane Bush at (435) 797-3363 or by email at diane.bush@usu.edu.