Autumn Quarter 2004-05 News
Democratic Changes and Human Rights in Mexico,
Mariclaire Acosta Urquidi, Visiting Professor, University of California at Berkeley
Ms. Acosta recently served two years as the special ambassador for human rights and democracy of Mexico under Vicente Fox . Acosta, introduced by Professor Terry Karl of the Political Science Department, spoke informally about the democratic challenges of human rights in Mexico and the current Vincente Fox Administration.
Optimistic about the democratic transition, Acosta still believes Mexico has a long way to go with regards to human right issues. She contributes Mexico’s current problems to institutional barriers and Fox’s inability to govern by serious negotiations with his opponents. Acosta believes “Human rights can only prosper in a functioning democracy with rule of law and a functioning judicial system.” Acosta argues that it will take a national effort to end the current deadlock and bring forth much needed public reform.
Univision Channel 14 News reporter Edgardo Quijano and his camera crew were also in attendance at Acosta’s lecture. Please keep posted with the CLAS website for information about the airing of his segment.
Fall Welcome Reception
On October 14th, 2004, CLAS held its annual autumn reception to start off the 2004-05 academic year. CLAS used this opportunity to commemorate the new directorship of Professor Herbert Klein and to welcome Visiting Tinker Professor Armando Di Filippo from Santiago, Chile.
Professor Klein joins us from Columbia University where he has taught for the last 35 years. Professor Klein is a leading scholar in the fields of Bolivian history and slavery in the Americas and has published close to twenty books on various topics of Latin American history.
Armando Di Filippo will be teaching courses on Latin American development while at Stanford. Professor Di Filippo has taught at the Stanford Overseas Program in Chile as well as Universidad Jesuita Alberto Hurtado de Chile. Professor Di Filippo, a renowned economist, has served as an advisor to the United Nations for over thirty years.
Dean Judith Goldstein did the honor of introducing Professor Klein to a large crowd of Stanford faculty members, visiting diplomats, students, staff, family and friends. Party-goers socialized on the Bolivar House lawn and enjoyed the enormous buffet prepared by Mediterranean Wraps on California Avenue.
The party was highlighted by a selection of fine wines generously donated by Ceja Vineyards and Mumm Vineyards of Napa Valley. Amelia Ceja, President of Ceja Winery was in attendance and graciously poured their house red and cabernet sauvignon. Mrs. Ceja proudly shared her family’s success story with Bolivar House guests. Starting with Pablo and Juanita Ceja, Mexican immigrants who came to California in the 1960’s to work in the vineyards, the Ceja family went from their humble beginnings as migrant field workers to owners of a critically acclaimed winery and vineyard. Ceja was voted “Best New Winery” by the 2002 Wine Appreciation Guild’s 12th Annual Wine Literary Awards in San Francisco and was recently featured in a full length article in the Sunday New York Times. For more information about Ceja’s fine wines please visit http://www.cejavineyards.com.
Party guest Armando Di Filippo Jr. summed up the event by saying “I was surrounded by great food, great wine, and interesting conversations with people from all over the Americas. I am glad I didn’t miss it.”
The Digital Divide and Challenges of Increasing Digital Inclusion in Mexico
Karen Coppock, CLAS Visiting Scholar and Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University, was the first speaker in the Wednesday Bolivar House Lecture Series for the autumn quarter. She discussed her doctoral research on the challenges of increasing digital inclusion, or Internet usage, in Mexico.
With a potential market of up to 1.5 billion users worldwide, key players in the private sector have attempted various strategies to promote Internet usage around the world. Coppock’s main focus has been on Mexico and the major attempts by various players to develop an Internet using society in Mexico. Her lecture covered various successes and failures of both corporate and government strategies. Coppock summarized her policy of how to succeed in closing the digital divide into three points: strive to set clear, realistic and measurable objectives; monitor, control and evaluate programs; and work from the premise that the Internet is a means, not an end.