F137.
The Impact of Denying DEI
Friday, February 9, 2024
10:35 am to 11:50 am
This panel explores the impacts of legislative restrictions on academic freedom by sharing productive classroom assignments that encourage critical/creative thinking and writing in various genres amidst a hostile environment. One panelist recounts the impact of incorporating anti-DEI legislation into the classroom. Another's intro students selected a controversial work to study/discuss, regardless of perceived threats. The third panelist considers the dangers of policing creative expressions.
Participants
Cecilia Rodríguez Milanés is the author of two short story collections—Oye What I’m Gonna Tell You and Marielitos, Balseros and Other Exiles, as well as Everyday Chica, the 2010 Longleaf Press Poetry Prize. She teaches literature and writing at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.
Fayeza Hasanat is an author, translator, and an educator. Her academic books and translation works are published internationally. The Bird Catcher and Other Stories, her debut short story collection, came out in 2018 from the Jaded Ibis Press.
Dr. Kevin Meehan is professor of English at the University of Central Florida, teaching Caribbean and multi-ethnic U.S. lit, literary translation, and environmental literature. His translations have appeared in _Callaloo_, and he releases original music-text work through the Sugar City Music label.
