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Integrating theories of decolonization and liberation.
Integrating theories of decolonization and liberation.

» Latinx and Latin American Studies

LatinxThe Minor in Latinx and Latin American Studies offers students interdisciplinary knowledge and cross-cultural skills that can be applied in a range of fields including but not limited to community advocacy, business, education, public policy, health sciences, and the arts. The minor integrates theories of decolonization and liberation with the exploration of historic geopolitical, economic, and sociocultural conditions of Latin American development and how they have shaped contemporary U.S. Latinx identities. The program explores the emergence of the Spanish and Portuguese colonial and postcolonial relations in the new world, including the encounter of the indigenous/native Americans and the Europeans, which subsequently shaped Latin American societies and cultures, and the emergence of Latinx identities in the U.S. It also covers the initial encounters between indigenous peoples and the Europeans in the new world and the subsequent ethnicity, racial relations, religious Latinxconversions, and migrations of peoples from Latin America to the U.S. Core courses provide a theoretical framework to analyze issues such as immigration, transnational social movements, and restructuring under global capitalism, as well as hands-on experience in community-based research methods and activism.

The minor requires a total of 21 credits distributed as outlined below. At least 12 credits should not be duplicated with coursework taken towards the student’s major and other minor(s). At least 12 of the credits must be upper-division and at least six of those must be completed in residency.

What careers does the Latinx and Latin American Studies Minor equip you for?

The Minor in Latinx and Latin American Studies offers students the opportunity to learn about a community that has a growing presence in the United States and is increasingly visible in our globalized society. The minor is designed to enhance students’ personalized education and professional development by focusing on Latinx and Latin American people.

Students can apply these skills in a range of careers, such as ...

  • Business
  • Law
  • Journalism
  • Nongovernmental Organizations/Nonprofits
  • Writing
  • Education
  • Health Care
  • Film
  • Government
  • Music
  • Public Policy
  • Fine Arts
Alumni Highlight
Johnny Montes, '22
"The reason I choose this minor was so that I can take a deep dive into to the history & culture of Latinx people across Central & South America & how their impacts affect us. Representation matters & it is important to study marginalized groups that academically has not always been given it’s due in the history books."
Alumni Highlight
Nathaly Del Real, '19
“Being one of the first students to minor in Latinx and Latin American Studies was an incredible and rewarding experience. I had the pleasure of having professors like Dr. Ruben Espinoza present the minor and its courses with high enthusiasm, passion, and intellect. Every class was a new opportunity to feel like I was a part of something great."
Alumni Highlight
Samantha Jimenez, '22
"I am a Latinx and Latin American Studies Minor because I was never taught about my Latinx history in school. I wanted to feel connected to my history, so I thought being a part of the minor would help me grow that connection. Being a Latinx minor means being part of a close-knit community with a common goal of learning about an amazing culture."

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Latinx-Oriented Events on Campus

Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024
Hispanic Heritage Month Kickoff
4-6 p.m.
Argyros Forum, 3rd Floor Patio

Program Director

Renee HudsonDr. Renee Hudson
Latinx Revolutionary Horizons: Form and Futurity in the Americas argues that Latinx revolutionary horizons are a hemispheric project in which contemporary Latinx authors return to earlier moments of revolution to theorize the limits of liberation in the present and point toward more liberatory futures. I pair nineteenth-century authors, who reflect the Latin American revolutions of the nineteen-century, with contemporary Latinx authors to historicize contemporary Latinx literature and resistance. In doing so, I illuminate how the confluence of Spanish colonization and U.S. occupation led to the creation of unique genres capable of apprehending the unique historical circumstances of the Americas: the captivity narrative, the guerrilla conversion narrative, the Latinx dictator novel, testimonio, and magical realism. By focusing on colonization over continent, I trace transnational connections that defy literary studies models and illuminate networks of affiliation. In thinking transhistorically, I uncover similar preoccupations about revolution and liberation that manifest on the level of genre and write against genre studies’ tendency toward deracination and reorient literary analyses of revolution towards a consideration of aesthetic form. 

Advising Corner

2024 Brochure

Need more information?

Contact Dr. Hudson!