UC Berkeley’s Cuban Studies Working Group: Conversation with Dr. Katherine Gordy, Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University

Posted on by Liladhar

All are invited to attend the Cuban Studies Working Group’s conversation with Dr. Katherine Gordy, Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University, which will take place tomorrow, November 7, 2025, at 11 am in Dwinelle 5125 (Level E)

RSVP Here: Lunch will be provided!

Katherine Gordy is an accomplished author and editor in the field of political science. Her published works include the single-authored book Living Ideology in Cuba: Socialism in Principle and Practice (2015) and the co-edited volume Globalizing Political Theory (2023).
Gordy’s research spans Latin American political thought, Cuban socialism, imperialism, and Marxism, with articles published in notable journals such as Polity, Public Culture, Postcolonial Studies, Alternatives: Global, Local and Political, and Viewpoint Magazine, as well as various edited collections.
Currently, she is engaged in a research project exploring empirical imaginaries and historical relativism as present in the works of two prominent Latin American Marxist thinkers: the Peruvian José Carlos Mariátegui and the Cuban Walterio Carbonell.
Please join the Cuban Studies Working Group on Friday, November 7th at 11am in the Spanish and Portuguese Library (Dwinelle 5125) for a lecture and lunch gathering with Dr. Katherine Gordy, Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University. Katherine is the author of Living Ideology in Cuba: Socialism in Principle and Practice (2015) and co-editor of Globalizing Political Theory (2023). Her work on Latin American political thought, Cuban socialism, imperialism, and Marxism has appeared in Polity, Public Culture, Postcolonial Studies, Alternatives: Global, Local and Political, and Viewpoint Magazine, and in various edited volumes. She is currently working on a project on empirical imaginaries and historical relativism in the work of Peruvian Marxist Jose Carlos Mariátegui and Cuban Marxist Walterio Carbonell. Speaker: Katherine Gordy, Professor of Political Science, San Francisco State University
A Conversation with Katherine Gordy

Sponsor: Townsend Center

Today at the Law School: Estado de Silencio / State of Silence: Film Screening and Panel

Posted on by Liladhar

Film Screening & Discussion: “State of Silence”
Date & Time: Wednesday, November 5, 2025, 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM

Estado de Silencio Film Title
The title of a film is “Estado de Silencio” (The State of Silence).

“State of Silence/Estado de Silencio” delves into the challenges facing press freedom in Mexico, chronicling the dangerous work of four journalists as they uncover the ties between organized crime and government corruption. Through their eyes, the documentary reveals the obstacles and risks they face in breaking the silence around systemic abuse and violence. A panel discussion and audience Q&A with will follow the screening:

RSVP here

REMINDER: November 18 – From Dissertation to Book: Navigating the Publication Process

Posted on by Timothy Vollmer

Coming up in two weeks. Join us!

From Dissertation to Book: Navigating the Publication Process

Date/Time: Tuesday, November 18, 2025 (11:00am–12:30pm)
RSVP to get the Zoom link

Hear from a panel of experts—an acquisitions editor, a first-time book author, and an author rights expert—about the process of turning your dissertation into a book. You’ll come away from this panel discussion with practical advice about revising your dissertation, writing a book proposal, approaching editors, signing your first contract, and navigating the peer review and publication process.

Event flyer for 'From Dissertation to Book: Navigating the Publication Process' workshop on November 18, 2025, 11:00am-12:30pm via Zoom, hosted by UCB Library. Features three panelists: Raina Polivka (UC Press Senior Editor), Jacob Grumbach (UC Berkeley Professor), and Dave Hansen (Authors Alliance Executive Director). Includes sign-up information and QR code.

Publisher Highlight: Riot of Roses

Posted on by Bee Lehman
Banner for riot of roses with six book covers

Located in Sejatnga, Unceded Tongva Territory, South Whittier, CA, the publishing house Riot of Roses (webpage) tells their readers that they “publish books to heal and liberate others” and affirm that the press is “for the people.”[1]

Black, full open rose on red background
Logo for Riot of Roses‘ opening screen

Brenda Vaca founded Riot of Roses in 2021 to publish her first poetry collection. Vaca had completed her first manuscript with the Community Literature Initiative program out of South Los Angeles, CA and found her options for publishing limiting. In an interview with Canvas Rebel, Vaca explained that she wasn’t happy with the non-negotiable contract she received from an already-established publisher and wasn’t content publishing with a platform like Amazon, which wouldn’t end up in a library system.[2]

To address that problem for both herself and others, Vaca created Riot of Roses as a space for writers to amplify historical silenced voices.

In the handful of years since the press’ inception, Vaca has done wonderful work promoting it and the press’ authors. They attend poetry slams, book events, and more around their location in Sothern CA. Readers can find more information about their events on their Instagram page.

Books at UC Berkeley’s Doe Library

Here are a handful of Riot of Roses’ recent publications in Doe Library:

For more material

You can search in the UC Library Search advanced search for “Riot of Roses” as a publisher (click here to see the search).

Endnotes

[1] “About,” Riot Of Roses Publishing House, accessed May 5, 2025, https://www.riotofrosespublishinghouse.com/about.

[2] “Meet Brenda Vaca,” Canvas Rebel, August 21, 2023, https://canvasrebel.com/meet-brenda-vaca/.

Faculty Book Talk at Townsend Center: November 5, 2025

Posted on by Liladhar
A page from faculty member Nathaniel Wolfson's book Concrete Encoded.
A page from faculty member Nathaniel Wolfson’s book Concrete Encoded.

Concrete Encoded: Poetry, Design, and the Cybernetic Imaginary in Brazil

Nathaniel Wolfson
Berkeley Book Chats
Wednesday, Nov 5, 2025 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
 220 Stephens Hall

Registration Requested

Concrete art and poetry—a radical avant-garde movement where the visual and spatial arrangement of words on the page carries as much weight as their literal meaning—emerged in Brazil during the 1950s, a time of rapid and transformative modernization. Professor Nathaniel Wolfson (Spanish & Portuguese) challenges the notion that concretism was socially passive, as some scholars have claimed. Instead, he presents it as the defining literary genre of the early information age.

Concrete Encoded: Poetry, Design, and the Cybernetic Imaginary in Brazil (Texas, 2025) examines how Brazilian poets, artists, and designers engaged with the rise of digital capitalism, forging a distinct cybernetic vision. Wolfson’s study reinterprets concretism—not just as Brazil’s most internationally influential artistic movement, but as a network connecting both prominent and overlooked figures. By mapping these creative exchanges, the book reveals broader, transnational conversations about technology and its critical possibilities.

Dia de los muertos in the East Bay

Posted on by Liladhar

Día de los Muertos and UC Berkeley Library Collections

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is an essential Mexican holiday, primarily celebrated on November 1st and 2nd. It is a time for families and friends to gather, pray for, and remember loved ones who have died. The celebration is vibrant, focusing on life and remembrance, rather than mourning. Key traditions include creating ofrendas (altars) decorated with marigolds (cempasúchil), favorite foods and drinks of the departed, candles, and colorful sugar skulls (calaveras).

In the pantheon of the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century artists who represent Mexico and Mexican art, the artwork of José Guadalupe Posada stands out as a bright constellation that continues to shine a light on important stories through woodcuts, imprints, and engravings. This virtual exhibition is a counterpart of the physical exhibition on Posada that was created by Liladhar P., the Librarian for Latin American Collections. The title of this exhibition is "Illustrating México one page at a time-Print Art of José Guadalupe Posada."The exhibition also highlights two important contemporary Mexican artists: Artemio Rodriguez and Sergio Sánchez Santamaría who continue to cherish and carry the legacy of José Guadalupe Posada. However, I note that these artists have their own stories and own unique style that illustrates the beauty of Mexico's printmaking heritage. This exhibition highlights selected print-items by José Guadalupe Posada. The curator owes a debt of gratitude to Aisha Hamilton and Virgie Hoban.

Illustrating Mexico one page at a time-Print Art of José Guadalupe Posada

Several venues across the East Bay feature Día de los Muertos altars. The Oakland Public Library is among the organizations hosting a related activity. Below are photos of the altar created by the library’s César Chávez branch (formerly the Latin American Library) to commemorate this important cultural tradition.

Photos below: Credit: Liladhar P.

Dia de los muertos altar at Cesar Chavez Branch Library of Oakland Public Library
Our Social Sciences Library at UC Berkeley Library, my departmental colleagues have created also an altar whose pictures I am sharing. Two colleagues who took initiative in supporting this activity are Angelica V.M. and Cody H.

Photos below: Credit Angelica VM.

A dia de los muertos altar at Social Sciences Research Library
A dia de los muertos altar at Social Sciences Research Library

The following subject terms can be helpful to our students when trying to locate materials on Dia de los muertos in our library’s collections.

Subject

Below is some music related to Dia de los muertos. Posted for non-commercial, educational and fair-academic use. The copyright belongs to the creators of this wonderful music. Enjoy!

Publisher Highlight: Dopamine Books

Posted on by Bee Lehman

Michelle Tea founded Dopamine Books (website) with the goal of publishing queer authors and highlighting queer writing.[1] Tea has been part of the California publishing world for more than a decade, working with City Lights Press and Feminist press to get imprints Sister Spit and Amethyst Editions (respectively) off the ground.[ 2 In 2023 in Los Angeles, Tea took those experiences and extensive exploration and founded the “vulgarian queer publisher.”[ 3]

Now, two years later, Dopamine can boast the release of short story anthologies, essays, and novels. Those titles include:

Finding titles at UC Berkeley

In contrast to other small presses, Dopamine is difficult to find in the UC Library Search. Because of their close collaboration with Semiotext(e) (https://www.semiotexte.com/), their books are sometimes listed with the later publisher.
Nonetheless, you can get a general impression of what UC Berkeley has from Dopamine through the UC Library Search.

EndNotes

1 “About,” DOPAMINE, accessed July 10, 2025, https://dopaminebooks.org.
2 Sophia Stewart, “Michelle Tea Launches Dopamine Books,” PublishersWeekly.Com, August 18, 2023, https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/93015-author-michelle-tea-launches-dopamine-books.html.
3 “SLUTS: Anthology,” Bookstore, Bookshop.org, May 7, 2024, https://bookshop.org/p/books/sluts-an-anthology-michelle-tea/20356857?ean=9781635902129&next=t.

Save the date: “Art Against Artillery: Cultural Resilience in Times of War”- A Panel Discussion

Posted on by Liladhar

We invite you to attend “Art Against Artillery: Cultural Resilience in Times of War,” a panel discussion.

Date: December 4, 2025
Time: 10 am PST (8 pm Kyiv Time)
Registration: https://tinyurl.com/artagainstartillery
Organizer: Dr. Liladhar R. Pendse, Librarian for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies

The event is free and open to all, provided prior registration is completed. Please sign in to your individual Zoom account and then register. All are welcome!

This image shows information about the online event, "Art Against Artillery: Cultural Resilience in Times of War": A panel discussionDate: December 4, 2025 Time: 10 am PST (8 pm Kyiv Time) Registration: https://tinyurl.com/artagainstartillery Organizer: Dr. Liladhar R. Pendse, Librarian for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies Event Description: Drawing from Art Against Artillery: Voices of Resilience, this discussion examines how Ukrainian artists transform the trauma of war into a cultural renaissance, wielding art as a vital tool for healing, resistance, and memory.
A poster for the event.

Publisher Highlight: Silver Sprocket

Posted on by Bee Lehman

Banner of four Silver Sprocket covers

Pink image with a simple drawing of an angry looking goat head.
Simple logo for Silver Sprocket as of 2025.

Founded in 2007, Silver Sprocket (https://www.silversprocket.net/) is a comics publisher in the Bay Area scene. In a 2024 interview Avi Ehrlich represented the community as a “‘radical indie comic publisher’ representing historically excluded artists’ work.” [1]

On their About page in their website, they write that they are “a San Francisco-based publisher, retail shop, and gallery space championing socially conscious and independently produced comic books, graphic novels, and related arts.”

Here at UC Berkeley, we don’t usually buy the pins and posters, but we have been able to acquire a range of their wonderful comic and other bound graphic materials including a few of their Zines including the Abortion Pill Zine: A Community Guide to Misoprostol and Mifepristone by Isabella Rotman, Sage Coffey & Marnie Galloway (UC Library catalog record, cover image in the gallery below).

They also note that “All works will remain 100% artist owned. Our aim is always to support the artist in making the best possible version of their own vision.”

Title Highlights at UC Berkeley

Some of our recent acquisitions include:

For more from the publisher at UC Berkeley, take a look at our UC Library Search.

Also note that most comics and graphic novels end up with the subject “COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS” and in the PN section of our Library stacks. If you want to Browse our comic material, consider heading down to the D level of the Main and looking for that PN section!

Request a purchase to let us know if you’re interested in other comic titles.

Endnotes

[1] Cheyenne Bearfoot, “Silver Sprocket Comics: Inside a Punk Comic Store in San Francisco,” KQED, June 20, 2024, https://www.kqed.org/education/538146/silver-sprocket-comics.

[2] avi, “About Silver Sprocket,” Silver Sprocket, accessed May 1, 2025, https://www.silversprocket.net/about/.

Library Trial: Latin America Commons by Coherent Digital

Posted on by Liladhar

We currently have trials set up for several modules from Coherent Digital. We have selected modules from Policy Commons, Africa Commons, and Latin America Commons available until Nov 15, 2025.

Please submit your feedback to your librarian for Latin American and Caribbean Studies: Liladhar

Latin America Commons by Coherent Digital is a full-text, richly-indexed database that provides unified, cross-searchable access to millions of pages of Latin American and Latinx primary-source materials, including books, magazines, photographs, maps, letters, diaries, ephemera, videos, and audio files that were previously scattered across the internet and in archives. The project aims to preserve at-risk content, rare documents, and often overlooked resources spanning from the 16th to the 21st centuries, making it easier for scholars and students to discover vetted, high-quality material for research and study.
Latin America Commons Landing Page

Latin America Commons by Coherent Digital is a full-text, richly-indexed database that provides unified, cross-searchable access to millions of pages of Latin American and Latinx primary-source materials, including books, magazines, photographs, maps, letters, diaries, ephemera, videos, and audio files that were previously scattered across the internet and in archives. The project aims to preserve at-risk content, rare documents, and often overlooked resources spanning from the 16th to the 21st centuries, making it easier for scholars and students to discover vetted, high-quality material for research and study.