Agents of Change: A legacy of feminist research, teaching, and activism at the University of Oregon

This talk will review the making of and show segments of the documentary Agents of Change. The documentary, by Gabriela Martínez and Sonia De La Cruz (Creative Commons, copyright 2013), chronicles the development of the University of Oregon Center for the Study of Women in Society and the UO Department of Women’s and Gender Studies within the broader context of the women’s movement. By 1970, women faculty members across universities in the United States were beginning to teach the first women’s studies courses, while also taking on the fight for pay equity and affirmative action in hiring.

Through a combination of archival footage, photographs, documents, and interviews, Agents of Change provides new insights into the efforts and challenges women faculty across the nation faced in their efforts to draw attention to women’s histories, issues, and concerns and to create a program for the study of women. The voices and stories heard in this documentary are exemplary of the struggles of women to gain ground in the academy, struggles that in the case of the University of Oregon were supported by a remarkable act of philanthropy that led to the founding of what is now known as the UO Center for the Study of Women in Society.

Presented by Gabriela Martínez.

Bio

Gabriela Martínez, associate director of the Center for the Study of Women in Society and associate professor in the School of Journalism and Communication, teaches a broad variety of courses from international communication to documentary production to human rights media at the University of Oregon. She works across disciplines intersecting her teaching, research, and creative work with the fields of International Communication, Latin American and Latino Studies, Ethnography, and Cinema Studies and Digital Cinema and Video Production. She is the author of the book Latin American Telecommunications: Telefónica’s Conquest, numerous documentaries including Qoyllur Riti: A Woman’s Journey; Respire Guatemala; Media, Women, and Rebellion in Oaxaca; and Keep Your Eyes on Guatemala.