Decolonizing HSIs

In this final episode of season 4 we dive into the concept of decolonizing HSIs. This plática features Lorena González, a Michoacana, Purepecha, Mexica Indigenous cis gender mujer who is faculty in counseling and La Raza Studies at Contra Costa College. Lorena lays out practical ways that HSIs can move beyond land acknowledgements and towards true decolonization for Latine students. She calls HSIs in, challenging us to reflect on the ways colonial logics are ingrained in the practices, policies, and culture of the institution, from the flags that are raised on campus to the language used to describe inequities. She pushes us to think about these inequities as injustices, because in a decolonial model we must move past the smoke and mirrors, and for HSIs that means having hard conversations about the ways that HSI grants are insufficient for advancing justice and liberation for communities of color. Lorena’s servingness philosophy is grounded in her lived experience as a transnational, multilingual woman crossing borders in education and life. She provides us a glimpse of what it looks like to embody a decolonial perspective and to live it through and through, from mothering to serving her community to disrupting her own HSI in practice. This episode is the perfect finale to this season, as we kicked it off with reflections on decolonization and liberation in equity spaces, and finish it with truth telling from our wise ancestor in the making, La Lorena, a true revolutionary.

Guest: Lorena González (she/her/ella), Faculty (Counseling/La Raza Studies), Contra Costa College

Instagram: @xingona516

Show Notes:

https://voices.berkeley.edu/education/committed-equity-education

APA Citation: 

Garcia, G.A. (Host). (2024, June 2). Decolonizing HSIs. (No.410) [Audio podcast episode]. In ¿Qué pasa, HSIs?. https://www.ginaanngarcia.com/podcast/410