A pair of speakers will come to campus Wednesday to speak about Mexican social movements, after the ASUO Senate voted to fund the event at a special meeting Monday.
The speakers will be Leonor Arenas Agis, a refugee from Mexico whose parents are described as guerilla leaders in the country, and John Gibler, a journalist and activist who has covered the Zapatista movement and been a foreign correspondent in Mexico.
The Senate held a special meeting to fund the request because the event will begin at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Willamette 100, the same time as the Senate’s next scheduled meeting. The Multicultural Center originally asked on May 5 for money to pay for the speakers, but the Senate was unable to meet because too few senators showed up.
Sen. Jairo Castaneda, who missed the meeting deliberately to protest other senators’ attitudes on marginalized groups, attended Monday’s meeting, an emergency session held because the MCC will host the speakers.
“It’s unfortunate we have a Senate meeting for this time,” Castaneda told MCC presenters.
The aborted May 5 meeting, where senators sat for 45 minutes attempting to find the 13th member they would have needed to hold the meeting, was only mentioned on similarly oblique terms, with no direct mention made of Castaneda’s decision. Sen. Chris Bocchicchio came closest to doing so when he told presenters, “Sorry about wasting your time on Wednesday.”
The Senate voted to give the MCC $1,150. ASUO Vice President Getachew Kassa told MCC presenters the ASUO’s executive branch could probably provide the other $150 they need to hold the event in its budget.
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