This presentation is hosted by the Honoring Dakota Project.

Where: Red Wing Library Foot Room

Free and open to the public with a light meal after the presentation.

The Ethnic Studies students from Winona State University, engage in learning on the ancestral lands of the Dakota peoples, and will share their research projects with the public. The research centers the lives of people of color, using decolonial ways of seeking knowledge that is not kept inside the walls of the university; rather, it is shared with the wider community engagingly and respectfully.

Student-scholar Nayeli Cubias, for instance, will share her research on the criminalization of abortion in El Salvador in the late 20th century and its effects on women in the country. With familial and ancestral roots in El Salvador, Cubias will emphasize the importance of this crucial topic in her role as both a researcher and a member of colonized communities in El Salvador. Student-scholar Peighton Agamaite, on the other hand, will be comparing/contrasting two recent films one with an Indigenous writer/producer and another with a non-Indigenous writer/producer. Agamaite is also employing a decolonial lens to understand economic decision-making, casting, and directing to shed light on colonial and racist features in the entertainment industry. Finally, student-scholar Stella Jisa will be exploring contemporary Two-Spirit identities by focusing on the experiences of Two Spirit influencers on Tik Tok. A decolonial theoretical framework inspires her to focus on the lived experiences of Two Spirit Influencers themselves, instead of the view of outsiders, illuminating the importance of Two Spirit peoples as part of our broader fabric of knowledge.

Zoe VandeBerg, WSU student and Indigenous activist will share of her experience reviving the Turtle Island Student Organization on the WSU campus.