UO Conference to explore violence, human
rights, reconciliation in
Latin America
The conference will feature five panel discussions
and more than twenty speakers.
EUGENE, Ore. – (Jan. 14, 2008) – U.S.
and Latin American scholars and experts will
discuss human rights, memory and democracy during
a two-day conference at the University of Oregon.
The conference will examine the ways in which
Latin American societies attempt to deal with
their recent past of violence and human rights
violations. It will explore, as well, what lessons
can be learned from attempts to build democratic
and just societies in the region.
The conference will begin at 7 p.m., Thursday,
Jan. 31, in the Erb Memorial Union, 1222 E. 13th
Ave., and wrap up at 6 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 2.
All sessions are free and open to the public.
For more information contact the Latin American
Studies Program, 541-346-5051 or the Wayne Morse
Center for Law and Politics, 541-346-3700. A
schedule is available on-line at http://las.uoregon.edu/events/conference.htm.
Arturo Escobar, the 2007-2008 Wayne Morse Center
Chair, will present the opening keynote speech, “Left
Turn, Right Turn? Where is Latin America Going?,” at
7 p.m., Jan. 31, in the EMU Ballroom. Escobar’s
most recent work focuses on social movements
and how places and regions struggle for difference
and diversity under globalization. He is the
Kenan Distinguished Professor of Anthropology,
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Greg Grandin, an award-winning scholar on Latin
American history and politics will present a
second keynote address, “Remembering Latin
America’s Other ‘Transition to Democracy’” at
5:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 1, in the EMU Fir Room.
Grandin is a professor of history at New York
University.
Arturo Arias, the final keynote speaker will
discuss “The Ghosts of the Past, Human
Dignity and the Collective Need for Reparation,” at
4:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 2, in the EMU Fir Room.
Arias, the author of numerous academic and fictional
works on Latin America, is a professor of Spanish
at the University of Texas at Austin.
The conference is organized by the Latin American
Studies Program, and is co-sponsored by the Wayne
Morse Center for Law and Politics, and the Savage
Endowment for International Relations and Peace.
About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching
and research institution and Oregon’s flagship
public university. The UO is a member of the
Association of American Universities (AAU), an
organization made up of 62 of the leading public
and private research institutions in the United
States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by
invitation only. The University of Oregon is
one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.
Contact: Pauline Austin, 541-346-3129, paustin@uoregon.edu
Source: Margaret Hallock, 541-346-3699, hallock@uoregon.edu
