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Buenos Dias! Bienvenidos a UW-Marshfield/Wood County! This
year for our campus/community theme, we are exploring the
topic of Latino newcomers to the Marshfield area.
Whether you have met them in the dairy or construction
industries, learned along side them in school, have eaten at
El Mezcal, or just noticed the expanded grocery offerings in
the ethnic food aisles of the grocery stores, you have
surely recognized the growing influence.
The reading we have chosen as a focus is entitled Apple
Pie and Enchiladas: Latino Newcomers to the Rural Midwest,
edited by Ann V. Millard and Jorge Chapa. Both the
Marshfield Public Library and UW-M/WC will be hosting
Millard and Dr. Isidore Flores in February for a discussion
on recent immigration reform efforts.
In the opening of their volume, Millard and Chapa write,
“Anglos and Latinos easily enjoy one another’s culture when
it comes to food - apple pie and enchiladas - giving an
impression of smooth social integration, that all is well in
the new social encounter. Our research, however, finds many
problems, especially prejudice against Latinos, as it shapes
their low-income niche in local economies and disrupts
neighborhoods, schools, and churches.”
The campus is excited not just for opportunities to eat
Mexican food and listen to lively music. We are also happy
to be offering the chance for the development of dialogues
in the community - dialogues that might help to explore
these problems. Our calendar includes a Latino Film
Series, a panel discussion on the Latino labor force, a
visit from the theatre troupe Teatro del Pueblo and an
Ethnic Traditions art show, to mention a few.
The Public Library is also hosting a reading discussion
series on coming-of-age novels by Latino writers that I will
be facilitating. The novels are The Afterlife by
Gary Soto, House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros,
and Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida by Victor Martinez.
All three books are quick, enjoyable reads that enrich
cultural appreciation.
We look forward to your participation and involvement.
Watch for upcoming articles that detail time and place of
events as well as the “The Top 10 Myths about Latinos.”
Hasta la vista!
Dr. Julie Tharp is the associate dean and English
professor at UW-Marshfield/Wood County, a freshmen-sophomore
campus of the University of Wisconsin.
