Alicia Marcelena Diaz (ar5811)

 Alicia M. Díaz is an Instructor for the Center for Latin and Latin American Studies (CLLAS). A native Detroiter, she earned both her bachelor's and law degrees from Wayne State and is a CLLAS alumni as well. The historic, contemporary, and speculative forces which she explores with students are intended to present significant opportunities for critical thinking, creativity and fully seeing themselves at the center of the American narrative, be it past, present, or future.

With the generous support of her CLLAS colleagues her work has featured: a) responsibility for core General Education offering, LAS 1420, providing students with an Introduction to Latinx Studies and preparation of a applied research project presented live at the Center’s Annual Academia del Pueblo Symposium, b) producing a documentary short on the 1980’s arrival of Central-American war exiles to Detroit and c) design of 3000 level special-topic seminars featuring: Community Practice through Ofrenda centered upon a student-curated installation at the Detroit Institute of Arts, a literary exploration of Latinx identity through science and speculative fiction as well as a survey of Afro-Atlantic religions and spiritual traditions entitled Black Gods and Latinidad.

The late author Octavia E. Butler once observed that she chose to write speculative fiction, a genre at her work’s inception virtually devoid of Afro-Descendant authors and characters, yet where she nonetheless was “. . . able to do anything and there were no walls to hem you in and there was no human condition that you were stopped from examining.” Alicia endeavors with her students to create such a space within the classroom.