The Committee for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (C.L.A.C.S.) held a workshop on art and resistance on Saturday, discussing the expression of revolutionary ideologies in Argentina through different mediums of art.

The discussion primarily focused on a project named Tucuma?n Arde. The project is a collection of liberal artwork from the 1960’s that spoke out against oppression and poverty in cities like Rosario and Buenos Aires.

The event is a part of the Adult Literacy Program, a series of free educational workshops designed by C.L.A.C.S. to benefit immigrants and their families.

“This is the third time I do one of these workshops for the adult literacy program at St. John’s and I appreciate being here because I like sharing my knowledge with people who are immigrants, like myself, and sharing my knowledge with people who come to the university by doing this kind of work,” said

Roberta Villalo?n, assistant professor of sociology at St. John’s and an affiliate of C.L.A.C.S.

Villalo?n, a Ph.D and scholar of Latin American studies, hosted the event.

Throughout her presentation, she discussed the main concepts within the Tucuma?n Arde revolution of art that greatly shaped the structure of Argentinean resistance movements.

Most of the pieces of art within the collection were designed by artists with feelings of solidarity towards those being oppressed by the government at the time.

Villalo?n felt that St. John’s has given her the opportunity to host programs intended to enlighten people about artwork and history.

“I think the university is very good in the sense of hosting events like these. They try to reach out to students who attend the school and teach them something new,” added Villalo?n.

“It’s great that the university is devoted to these kinds of social justice programs that work with the whole community,” she said.

In the past, C.L.A.C.S. has been involved with events involving family violence, immigration, and inequality within minority groups in the Americas.

The organization has also been involved with immigration debates and discussions held by filmmakers that deal with gentrification in Harlem.

“I thought it was a wonderful event because it was very informative,” said Gerry Lifrieri, a student who attended the event.

“In our everyday lives, we tend to overlook art and not really look deeply into it even though it can affect change but I think it is something we should start looking more into and I think that it is important that students and adults continue to learn about struggles and about how we can force change,” added Lifrieri.

The university will sponsor more events in the future that will discuss related topics within the Latino and Caribbean community.

C.L.A.C.S. is also looking to usher in an era of broader student outreach that will touch more members of St. John’s. “Education certainly goes far beyond the classroom and I think forums, discussions, and seminars like these are really important towards expanding knowledge to a greater community,”

Lifrieri said.