Retracing Louisiana’s Roots: Exploring the State’s Hispanic/Latinx Heritage, presented by LSU Libraries' Diversity Committee and LSU Latinx Faculty and Staff Caucus, will be on display in the Middleton Library second floor lobby from September 16 through October 18. This display celebrates Hispanic and Latinx influences in Louisiana by revisiting the state’s colonial past and exploring its cultural legacy. It provides an account of how Louisiana’s Hispanic history has connections, parallels and similarities, confluences, and affinities with Latin America. The display is also supplemented with resources to assist those wanting to learn more through the libraries’ collections as well as informational flyers to learn more about organizations serving the Latinx and Hispanic community in Louisiana. It also coincides with a speaker series put on by LSU Latinx Faculty and Staff Caucus. The speaker series includes: The Resurgence of Spanish in Louisiana Panelists: Rafael Orozco, PhD | Foreign Languages & Literatures Dorian Dorado, PhD | Foreign Languages & Literatures When: 9/18, 12:00-1:00 in Hill Memorial Lecture Hall Summary: This presentation explores the resurgence of Spanish in the state of Louisiana whose patrimonial Spanish varieties, together with those in New Mexico, are among the oldest found in the United States. In the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, Louisiana’s Hispanic population experienced an unprecedented increase which has resulted in the revival of the Spanish language after a steady decline during the 20th century. Today the influence of Spanish and the Hispanic culture are marked throughout the Pelican State, from its authentic cuisine to newly emerged Spanish-language media. We explore quantitatively and qualitatively sociolinguistic patterns among the newly arrived Spanish speakers in Louisiana (mainly Central Americans) focusing on calques, variable subject pronoun expression, the expression of futurity, and forms of address. In addition, we carry out an extensive investigation on the perceptual attitudes toward Spanish in Louisiana. Such perceptions of Louisiana natives toward Spanish reveal positive evaluations of Peninsular, Mexican, and Argentinean Spanish whereas Central American and Caribbean varieties are evaluated negatively. Interestingly, Louisianans’ perceptions are congruent with those in several speech communities throughout the Hispanic World and reveal important information about Spanish-speakers’ identity. Although Spanish in the United States has been extensively researched, there is a limited number of studies on Spanish in Louisiana. Thus, our study provides a descriptive analysis of a brand-new manifestation of Spanish and its speakers as well as the linguistic and cultural impact that they have on 21st-century Louisiana. In sum, our investigation fills an existing gap in research on Spanish in the United States and sociolinguistic studies while opening new research paths. Anti-Bilingualism in the U.S. & its Impact on Latinx Panelists: Alejandra S. Torres – PhD Candidate | English Denitza Duran – Master's Student | Hispanic Studies Jacqueline Oquendo – PhD Student | Mass Communication When: 9/24, 12:00-1:00 in Hill Memorial Lecture Hall Summary: The shaming experienced by Latinx for either not speaking English well enough, and/or not speaking Spanish to a certain standard is real. Playing a majorly politicized role, language is often tied to identity, educational opportunities, and cultural preservation or assimilationist pressures. This event presents a brief overview on Spanish/English bilingualism in the U.S. Three Latinx panelists discuss how anti-bilingual sentiment impacts their lives. Fourteen Days that Rocked Puerto Rico Panelists: Rosa M. Lázaro – PhD Candidate | History Erick J. Padilla – Master's Student | Philosophy Pedro L. Ramos – PhD Candidate | History When: 10/9, 12:00-1:00 in Hill Memorial Lecture Hall Summary: During the summer of 2019, hundreds of private chat messages between the governor of Puerto Rico and his inner circle were leaked (an event known as Telegramgate or Chatgate). Glaringly, the contents showed a pronounced lack of sympathy for the victims of Hurricane Maria and derogatory comments about women. In response, the Puerto Rican population galvanized to protest decades of government-led mismanagement and social oppressions they have endured. After two weeks of rigorous protesting (across the island and abroad), Governor Ricardo Rosselló was forced out of office