Convocation: Leo Chavez

Leo Chavez presents an anthropological view of immigration, offering an analysis of myths vs. facts, as well as representations and misrepresentations of Latinos in the media. A professor of anthropology at the University of California Irvine, Chavez’s research examines various issues related to transnational migration, including immigrant families and households, labor market participation, motivations for migration, the use of medical services, and media constructions of "immigrant" and "nation." His books include Shadowed Lives: Undocumented Immigrants in American Society, which provides an ethnographic account of Mexican and Central American undocumented immigrants in San Diego County, California. Covering Immigration: Popular Images and the Politics of the Nation examines representations of immigrants in the media and popular discourse in the United States through the lens of magazine covers and their related articles. His newest book is The Latino Threat: Constructing Immigrants, Citizens and the Nation, which examines issues of anti-Latino discourse, struggles over the meaning of citizenship, and the role of media spectacles in society in relation to the politics of reproduction, organ transplants, the Minuteman Project, and immigrant marches and protests. The title of his presentation is "Latinos and Immigration Reform."