Afternoon Tertulia: Women of Color and Grassroots Activism – Lessons from the Sixties and Seventies

Thursday, September 14, 2023 at 6 PM ET

Join CENTRO and CUNY’s Hunter College for an Afternoon Tertulia on feminist action as a response to intersectional oppression within grassroots organizations of the sixties and seventies. This tertulia brings together authors Ericka Huggins,of the Black Panther Party, Iris Morales, of the Young Lords, and Patricia Romney, of the Third World Women’s Alliance, for a panel around their experiences as women within these organizations. The collective fruits of the grassroots activism of the Black Panther Party, the Young Lords, and the Third World Women’s alliance has empowered members of marginalized Black and Brown communities to stand up and demand what’s theirs. The fruits of their intersectional and coalitional activism continue to inspire and empower Black and Brown communities and all people who work for social justice.  

Women made up 60% of the Black Panther Party and were central to the movement. They pushed back against patriarchal thinking and behavior and homophobia within their organization before it was common for many grassroots organizations to do so. Comrade Sisters: Women of the Black Panther Party – E. Huggins, (2022), Revisiting Herstories: The Young Lords Party – I. Morales, (2023) and We Were There: The Third World Women’s Alliance and the Second Wave – P. Romney (2021) provide essential insight into the role of women in the justice movements of the sixties and seventies.

This Afternoon Tertulia will have simultaneous English to Spanish translation for virtual participants. Historically, tertulias – informal social gatherings where current events, art, philosophy, and more are discussed – have played a significant role in fostering cultural and intellectual exchange in Puerto Rico and Latinx communities around the world.

Missed this event? Watch the recording here?

Main Image: Richie Perez Papers, Black Woman with Sunglasses at Microphone at Voter Registration Rally. Center for Puerto Rican Studies Library & Archives, Hunter College, CUNY.

This event is produced in partnership with the Hunter College AFPRL Department and the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute.