UIC’s Department of Latin American and Latino Studies (LALS) celebrated its 50th anniversary in the Fall of 2024. Founded in 1974, the LALS program has become a recognized center of research and learning that educates new generations of leaders in almost every professional area.

To commemorate this milestone, LALS organized a series of events highlighting its history and vibrant intellectual culture, beginning with a panel that explored the department’s birth out of student and community activism, as well as its recent development and contributions. Events following this initial panel included an art exhibit, Bordando Esperanza/Embroidering Hope, focused on traditional embroidered cloths crafted by asylum-seekers stranded at the U.S.-Mexico border; a book launch for Prof. Barbara Sostaita’s Sanctuary Everywhere; a panel on undocumented activism at UIC; a panel on contemporary Black diasporas across the Americas; and a culminating joint symposium with Alianza Americas on the future of Latin America and US Latinos.

Bordando Esperanza Exhibit Event

We are very grateful to everyone who celebrated with us!

LALS 50th Anniversary Event Calendar

Calendar of LALS’ 50th Anniversary events (2024):