About
Breaking the Cycle of Powerlessness: Education, Housing, and Justice
A panel on housing challenges today and the history of the Incarnate Word Sisters concern and action the last hundred years will be presented as a result of the research work from Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 of the students of Dr. Laura Cannon, history professor at University of the Incarnate Word and their work on a Council of Independent Colleges grant, “Humanities Research for the Public Good.”
The panel will highlight the social justice legacy of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, their ministries related to housing, education, and community outreach. As an illustration of how the Sisters' ministries have served the community, attendees will learn in particular about Visitation House Ministries, a transitional housing program founded by the Sisters in 1985 and still in operation today.
https://visitationhouseministries.org/
Sister Yolanda Tarango, CCVI, a co-founder of Visitation House with Sister Neomi Hayes, CCVI, will give brief introductory remarks. The panel will be led by Dr. Monica Cruz, a Special Research Associate at the Institute “Institute for Demographic and Socioeconomic Research” (IDSER) at UTSA on housing challenges today. She has served on the For Everyone Home initiative for the City of San Antonio, which will develop an Anti-Displacement Agenda to preserve and protect affordable housing in the community. She recently earned her Ph.D. in Applied Demography where her research focused on the effects of place-based economic development policies on communities with high concentrations of poverty.
Attendees will also actively participate in smaller workshop groups about housing justice and housing advocacy. With the tools they acquire, attendees can learn how to advocate for housing justice in their local community and, therefore, continue to expand the Sisters’ legacy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftCc2kHav-c
Suggested background reading and more will be posted Lunch will be provided followed by a tour to witness neighborhood realities and hopes for transformation. That will include opportunities to see housing and some of this ‘Tentacles’ of redlining continue to grip upward mobility in San Antonio. Latinos and Blacks of San Antonio were systemically shut out from opportunity. https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/redlining-in-san-antonio-17007447.phputm_campaign=CMS%20Sharing%20Tools%20(Premium)&utm_source=share-by-email&utm_medium=email St. Mary’s University’s Westside San Antonio Humanities Project, the area known as Barrio Laredo (18th Century), Laredito (18th Century), and the Latin Quarter (20th Century) https://stmupublichistory.org/westside/
This conference is sponsored by the University of the Incarnate Word History Department, The Ettling Center for Civic Leadership & Sustainability, and the Incarnate Word Sisters Justice, Peace, Creation Committee, Texas Housers and Visitation House.The conference is generously supported by the Council of Independent Colleges “Humanities Research for the Public Good,” Connecting Independent Colleges with Their Communities through Undergraduate Research, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
The Grant team includes Dr. Laura Cannon, Donna Guerra, Archivist of the IW Sisters, Dr. Arturo Chavez, and Sr. Martha Ann Kirk.
If you are a UIW student seeking Service Credit, this is a part of the Cardinals in the Community: A Global Day of Service (more information here.) Transportation available. 6.5 hours service credit for those attending the whole event (or less for those who can participate for small periods of time
9:00 Welcome/introductions 9:15-10:30 - Research presentation on the Sisters and their ministries
10:30-1:00 - Dr. Cruz's panel/workshop/breakout sessions
1:00 Lunch
2 - 3 pm A tour to see housing and some of this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftCc2kHav-c
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