On Usable Pasts for Our (Latina/o) Present

Why do we do what we do? Why do we write these histories? What is the difference between, say, literary-intellectual history and social-political history? The panel addresses these questions by answering more specific... [ view full abstract ]

Why do we do what we do? Why do we write these histories? What is the difference between, say, literary-intellectual history and social-political history? The panel addresses these questions by answering more specific questions. My paper will focus on the more philosophical questions of writing useful or effective histories. Why do we need "Latina/o" histories? What would they look like? And what would they build on?