Anthropologists and critical thinkers from the South
On Wednesday, November 11, starting at 16:00 p.m. New York time (USA), the colloquium and presentation of the book “ Anthropologists and critical thinkers from the South: from the pioneers to the insurgent feminists and activists ” published by CLACSO and the Autonomous University of Chiapas (UNACH) in Mexico will take place.
This event is co-sponsored by Columbia University and its Department of Anthropology, the Center for the Study of Ethnicity and Race (CSER), the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society (ICLS), the Autonomous University of Chiapas (Mexico), the Institute of Latin American Studies (ILAS), and the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO).
Speakers:
– Marisa G. Ruiz Trejo : feminist anthropologist from UNACH and Tinker visiting professor at Columbia for the fall of 2026, dedicated to research on decolonial epistemologies and gender violence in Chiapas and Central America and author of the book.
– Pamela Calla : Bolivian anthropologist at New York University (NYU) who researches gender, race and state formation, and co-founder of the Observatory against Racism in Bolivia.
– Irma Alicia Velásquez Nimatuj : the first Maya-K'iche' woman with a doctorate in social anthropology, whose historical case helped to classify racial discrimination as a crime in Guatemala.
– Laura Nash : artist and art teacher in New York public schools who accompanied her mother, anthropologist June Nash, on fieldwork in Mexico and Bolivia.
– Paola Bergallo : Professor of Law at Torcuato Di Tella University and CONICET researcher who studies how Law shapes development, gender and health policies in Latin America.
– Diana Gómez Correal : Colombian anthropologist and first Vice Minister of Women of Colombia, dedicated to research on peace, memory and feminist and decolonial studies.
Moderator: Maja Horn – Professor in the Department of Spanish and Latin American Cultures at Barnard College. Director of the Barnard Centre for Women's Research (BCRW).
This book brings together the voices of twenty-eight anthropologists and critical thinkers from the Global South, whose diverse trajectories, marked by different ethical and political stances and life experiences, have shaped unique ways of doing anthropology and inhabiting the world. Through encounters, conversations, and interviews, the authors narrate their memories in the first person, evoke their childhood and youth, and share the decisive moments that marked their paths, including those in which they faced risks, vulnerability, or felt their bodies most exposed.
Throughout these pages, the interviewed thinkers reflect on their beginnings in anthropology, their early fieldwork experiences, and how they built relationships with the people and communities they worked with. They also recount the ethical principles that guided their practices, based on respect, care, and responsibility toward the diverse women, men, non-binary people, children, and families with whom they worked in various settings. The book also explores their senses of justice and memory, as well as the challenges they faced in their personal and academic journeys.
To follow the broadcast from the Zoom application or from the browser
Wednesday November 11
New York and Colombia: 4:00 – 5:30 pm
Mexico and Guatemala: 3:00 – 4:30 pm
Bolivia: 5:00 – 6:30 pm
Argentina: 6:00 – 7:30 pm
Registration is required for all non-Columbia University members due to campus safety protocols. The registration deadline is 14:00 p.m. the day before the event. Columbia community members are welcome to attend without registering, but registration is appreciated to help with event logistics.
Event contact details:
[email protected]
