As scholars of U.S. history, we are deeply concerned about the widespread lack of knowledge about American history, particularly regarding the origins of Latinos in the country and their contributions to the expansion of American democracy. Closing the knowledge gap about Latino history through public education is central to our work.
By illuminating this history, we seek to bridge gaps in understanding and inspire a more informed and egalitarian society.
The Latinx Freedom Movement Archive and Exhibition Project is a national public humanities initiative dedicated to preserving and elevating the histories of Latinx civil rights activism. Through a series of outdoor exhibitions in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and Washington, D.C., the project brings to light the pivotal role Latinx communities played in shaping social justice movements of the 1960s and 1970s, while connecting these struggles to a longer historical arc.
Anchored by a national conference at the CUNY Graduate Center and supported by archival preservation and oral history initiatives, the project safeguards the voices and materials of movement veterans for future generations. By activating public space and expanding access to this history, the initiative seeks to center the Latinx Freedom Movement within the broader American narrative.
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Photo credits: School Begins, cartoon by Louis Dalrymple, 1899, Publisher: N.Y.: Published by Keppler & Schwarzmann, 1899 January 25, Courtesy of: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2012647459. Palante. Vol. 3, No. 13, Source: Courtesy of the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives https://dlib.nyu.edu/palante/books/tamwag_palante000029/#1. Photographer: Russell Lee, 1949, Source: Russell Lee Photograph Collection, Center for American History, University of Texas. Peter Rodriguez, Wilson High School student, at a 1968 school board meeting. Courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library https://tessa2.lapl.org/digital/collection/photos/id/22599. Statue of Liberty superimposed on a dirty street in East Harlem, (Palante 2, no. 13 [October 16, 1970]; courtesy of the Tamiment Library. Rioting at Roosevelt Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, June 1971, courtesy of the Guy Bralley/Albuquerque Journal. Young Lords Newspaper Collection Y.L.O. Vol. 1, No. 1, Special Collections and Archives, DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois. Sylvia Mendez, Photo Source from Duke Office of Institutional Equity. “YLO Takes Over Police Station.” Photographer: Hiram Maristany, Central Committee of the New York Young Lords, 1969, Benjamin Franklin High School, East Harlem. Members of the Young Lords marched in the Puerto Rican Parade in June 1970, Photographer: Librado Romero, Publisher: The New York Times. Juan González shows a copy of Palante to a rider on the New York subway, February 1971, Photograph by Michael Abramson; courtesy of Haymarket Books. YLP Poster, courtesy of Denise Oliver. Lincoln Hospital cartoon illustrated by Denise Oliver. (Palante 2, no. 7 [July 17, 1970]; courtesy of the Tamiment Library), Photographer: Michael Abramson. Featuring Gloria Rodriguez, Photographer: Michael Abramson. Featuring the Young Lords march to the United Nations, October 10th, 1970. Young Lords march. Photograph by Michael Abramson; courtesy of Haymarket Books. Photograph by Máximo Colón. Young Lord briefs Cha Cha Jiménez on security at a public meeting, 1969. (Photograph by Paul Sequeira; courtesy of Getty Images). José Angel Gutierrez, Chinook 1971: Washington State University (Annual Year Book) https://archive.org/details/chinook1971univ/page/27/mode/1up. Hilda Reyes ; Las Adelitas de Aztlán, Photographer: George Rodriguez. Young Lords coed communal living, Courtesy of Henry Medina Archives. Denise Oliver-Velez, Photographer: Eva Essenthier.