GRANT SUPPORTS SCREENINGS, ACCOMPANYING PROGRAMMING

CSU Monterey Bay has received a grant to support programming around Latino Americans: 500 Years of History, a public exploration of the rich and varied experiences of the country’s largest minority group.

The $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library Association will fund screenings of the six-part documentary, Latino Americans, created for PBS in 2013. Programs, lectures and performances will accompany the screenings.

Events are scheduled on campus and in Salinas including:

• Oct. 8, 6 p.m., screening of "The New Latinos" at the CSUMB Music Hall, Sixth Avenue and Butler Street. The film explores the history of migration from Puerto Rico, Cuba and the Dominican Republic to the U.S. in the mid-20th century and the indelible mark that Latinos/as of Caribbean origin have made on the U.S. The film will be introduced with brief remarks by Professor Maria Villasenor.

• Nov. 10, 6 p.m., screening of "The New Latinos" at the Cesar Chavez Library, 615 Williams Road, Salinas. The film will be introduced by Dr. Amalia Mesa-Bains, who will also present a few images of art by Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican artists.

• Nov. 18, 6 p.m., screening of "Prejudice and Pride" at the Music Hall. The film details the creation of the proud "Chicano" identity, as labor leaders organize farmworkers in California and as activists push for better education opportunities for Latinos, the inclusion of Latino studies, and empowerment in the political process. The screening will include a guest lecture by Luis Valdez, who narrated the episode.

More events will be scheduled for the spring semester. The tentative schedule includes:

• Feb. 9, 6 p.m., a poetry reading by Professor Diana Garcia will accompany a screening at the Cesar Chavez Library in Salinas.

• March 31, 6 p.m., lecture and performance by Professor Umi Vaughan, an expert on Afro-Latino cultures, will accompany a screening at the Salinas Public Library.

All events are free and open to the public.

Dr. Villasenor was awarded the grant. She worked with Professors Amalia Mesa-Bains and Angelica Muro of the Visual and Public Art Department to develop the programming.