Neglected in the 90's: Chicanos' Struggle for Dignity at UCSB
How Chicana and Chicano students at UCSB turned documents, protest, and their own bodies into a public demand for dignity. The story begins with El Plan and the longer struggle for Chicano Studies, then moves into the 1990s conflict over Rudy Acuña, El Congreso’s demands, the 1994 hunger strike, and the aftermath that showed how difficult real institutional change can be. The Chicano movement and their demands weren't surrounded by one professor or one department, but rather about the struggle for recognition and dignity for the growing demographic of Latinos on-campus, in communities near UCSB, and in the state. Students were responding to a university that celebrated diversity in public, while limiting Chicano Studies, threatening El Centro, ignoring Latina/o communities, and delaying the demands students had been making for years before the hunger strike.
Explore the stories
See the objects behind the stories
There are 38 objects featured in the stories. Have a look at 4 of them below.