September 11, 2018 Hispanic Heritage Month Events at the Library of Congress

Press Contact: Deanna McCray-James (202) 707-9322
Public Contact: Catalina Gómez (202) 707-6404
Website: Hispanic Heritage Month
Request ADA accommodations five business days in advance at (202) 707-6362 or ADA@loc.gov

To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs between September 15 and October 15, various divisions throughout the Library of Congress will host a collections display, a series of lectures, concerts, book talks and other programs and initiatives.

Kicking off the month-long celebration will be a reading by Ecuadorian Poet Raúl Vallejoon Wednesday, Sept. 19, at 1 p.m. in the Hispanic Reading Room (LJ-220) on the second floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First Street. S.E. Washington, DC. Vallejo is an Ecuadorian diplomat, novelist, poet, and Fulbright Scholar. He is a recorded author of the Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape, and will be reading from his newest award-winning book Mística del Tabernario(2017). The event is free and open to the public, but tickets are available. To secure tickets, visit this event-ticketing site:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-reading-with-ecuadorian-poet-raul-vallejo-tickets-49957200331

To continue the festivities, the Library has planned an array of programs, displays and digital offerings that celebrate the rich and long history of Hispanic identity, civilization and culture:

Thursday, September 20: Concert
7:30 p.m., Coolidge Auditorium, ground floor, Thomas Jefferson Building
The Archive Challenge Sampler Concert featuring Elena & los Fulanos
The band Elena & los Fulanos will appear as one of four performers taking part in this concert presented by the American Folklife Center. The group is a bilingual folk rock band based in Washington, DC. Since 2011, they have been creating music that ranges from twangy, heartbreak-themed folk Americana, to soothing, introspective, violin-infused Latin rock. The event is free and open to the public.
Find out more:
https://www.loc.gov/concerts/folklife/archivechallenge-2.html
Free, no tickets required.

Wednesday, September 26: Gallery Talk
noon, South Gallery, 2nd floor, Thomas Jefferson Building
Latinos in Baseball
Hispanic Division specialists Tracy North and Talía Guzman-Gonzalez will explore the Library’s resources that deal with the contributions of Latinos in baseball. Nearly 30% of baseball players in the major leagues today are foreign born and players from Latin America and the Caribbean have contributed to the success of America’s national pastime.
Free, no tickets required.

Thursday, September 27: Conversations, Lectures & Readings
10 -11 a.m., Madison Hall, 1st floor, James Madison Memorial Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E. Washington, DC
Conversation with Congressman Pete Aguilar (D-CA)
In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Representative Pete Aguilar will discuss issues facing Latinos today and his experience as a Latino member of Congress. Rep. Aguilar represents the 31st Congressional District of California, and serves on the House Appropriations Committee. In the 115th Congress, Rep. Aguilar holds the leadership positions of Whip of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and is an Assistant Whip in the House Democratic Caucus. Sponsored by the Hispanic Cultural Society of the Library of Congress. 
Free tickets available via Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/conversation-with-congressman-pete-aguilar-tickets-49653715600

Friday, September 28: Awards & Exhibition
2:30 p.m., LJ-119, First floor, Thomas Jefferson Building
2018 Américas Awards Ceremony
Ibi Zoboi, author of American Street (Harper Collins Publishers, 2017), and Duncan Tonatiuh, author and illustrator of Danza! Amalia Hernández and El Ballet Folklórico de México (Abrams Books, 2017), will receive the 2018 Américas Award. The Américas Award is given in recognition of U.S. works of fiction, poetry, folklore, or selected non-fiction (from picture books to works for young adults) that authentically portray Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latinos in the United States. Cosponsored by the Hispanic Division and the Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP).

This program will be livestreamed on the Library’s Facebook page at facebook.com/libraryofcongress and its YouTube site (with captions) at youtube.com/LibraryOfCongress, so children, parents, and classrooms anywhere with an internet connection can join the fun.
Free tickets available via Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-2018-americas-award-ceremony-tickets-49652401670

Wednesday, October 10: Conversation, Lecture & Reading
1 p.m., West Dining Room, 6th floor, James Madison Memorial Building
Making Chocolate: Harper Macaw and Brazilian Cacao Farmers
D.C.-based chocolate makers Harper Macaw will present on the company’s history, the state of cacao production in Brazil, and the history of chocolate and cacao in Brazil and/or Latin America.
The event is free, but tickets are available. To secure tickets, visit this event-ticketing site:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/making-chocolate-harper-mccaw-and-brazilian-cacao-farmers-tickets-49955751999

Thursday, October 11: Awards & Exhibition
1 - 4 pm; Whittall Pavilion, Ground floor, Thomas Jefferson Building
Hispanic Heritage Month Art Showcase: Recent Acquisitions of Prints & Photographs
The Library of Congress' Hispanic and Prints & Photographs Divisions will showcase a display of recent acquisitions of photography and prints by Latin American and U.S. Latino artists for our collections. The display will include works by Fernell Franco (Colombia), Leo Matiz (Colombia), Marta Pérez García (Puerto Rico), David Taylor (U.S.), and Mario Torero (U.S.), among others. Co-sponsored by the Hispanic Division, the Prints & Photographs Division, and the Hispanic Cultural Society of the Library of Congress.
Free tickets available via Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hispanic-heritage-month-art-showcase-recent-acquisitions-tickets-49654134854

Tuesday, October 16Conversation, Lecture & Reading
4 p.m., Whittall Pavilion, ground floor, Thomas Jefferson Building 
Reading & Conversation with Cristina Rivera Garza
The Mexican novelist will read from her work and participate in a moderated discussion with translators Suzanne Jill Levine and Aviva Kana. Rivera Garza's latest novel The Taiga Syndrome (El mal de la Taiga) was published in English in 2018 by the Dorothy Project.
The event is free, but tickets are available. To secure tickets, visit this event-ticketing site: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/reading-conversation-with-cristina-rivera-garza-tickets-49956639654  

Spanish Language Tours

Sábado, 22 de septiembre, 1:00 pm/Saturday, September 22, 1 p.m.
Miércoles, 26 de septiembre, 1:00 pm/Wednesday, September 26, 1 p.m.
Miércoles, 3 de octubre 1:00 pm/Wednesday, October 3, 11 a.m.
Viernes, 5 de octubre 11:00 am/Friday, October 5, 11 a.m.
Martes, 9 de octubre, 1:00 pm/Tuesday, October 9, 1 p.m.
Jueves 11 de octubre, 1:00 p.m./Thursday, October 11, 1 p.m.
Lunes, 15 de octubre, 11:00 am/Monday, October 15, 11 a.m.

La Oficina de Servicios al Visitante de la Biblioteca del Congreso ofrecerá visitas guiadas en español del edificio Thomas Jefferson. Las visitas están limitadas a 25 personas en orden de llegada. Reserve su espacio con 30 minutos de antelación al comienzo de la visita en el mostrador de información para visitantes que está localizado en la planta baja. Las visitas duran una hora aproximadamente y abarcan un preámbulo de la historia y servicios de la Biblioteca y el arte y la arquitectura del histórico edificio Thomas Jefferson. Solicite acomodaciones del Acta de Americanos con Discapacidades (ADA, sigla en inglés) con cinco días laborables de antelación a través del (202) 707-6362 o en ADA@loc.gov.

Digital Offerings

Founded in 1943, the Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape is an audio archive that has captured the voices of more than 750 poets and prose writers from the Luso-Hispanic world, representing 32 countries and more than 10 languages spoken in the Iberian Peninsula, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the U.S. Fifty new audio recordings will be added to the Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape online feature during the Hispanic Heritage Month commemoration. New material will include the recordings of Spanish poet Vicente Aleixandre, Mexican poet Homero Aridjis, Salvadorian poet Manlio Argueta, Brazilian writer Adriana Lisboa, and Colombian author Héctor Abad Faciolince.  To learn more about the archive, visit the project’s site: loc.gov/rr/hispanic/archive.html

Podcast

Season one of the Library’s podcast La Biblioteca (The Library) which aired in 2017 features Library specialists in the Hispanic Reading Room exploring the Library’s rich collections that focus on the cultures of Spain, Portugal, Latin America and the Hispanic community in the United States. The season is titled “Listening to the Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape,” and it delves into some of the material of the historic archive. Although some podcasts contain Spanish-language audio excerpts, all of the conversations and interviews in the series are in English and meant for a global audience.

The Library of Congress is the world’s largest library, offering access to the creative record of the United States – and extensive materials from around the world – both on-site and online. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office. Explore collections, reference services and other programs and plan a visit at loc.gov; access the official site for U.S. federal legislative information at congress.gov; and register creative works of authorship at copyright.gov.

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PR 18-116
2018-09-12
ISSN 0731-3527