Dr. Victor M. Rodriguez

Dr. Victor M. Rodriguez

California State University, Long Beach
Chicano & Latino Studies Dept.

E-Mail: victor.rodriguez@csulb.edu

Dr. Rodríguez is Professor emeritus in the Department of Chicano and Latino Studies at California State University, Long Beach. He has previously taught courses in sociology, anthropology and Latino Politics, Chicano/Latino Studies at the University of California, Irvine and at Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico.

Born in Puerto Rico, Dr. Rodriguez was actively involved in leadership positions within the pro-independence and labor movements. Was president of the Newspaper Guild chapter at the San Juan Star, English daily newspaper in San Juan, Puerto Rico. His interest in social issues and social activism has won him recognition and a significant publication record.

He taught sociology for ten years at Concordia University of Irvine before accepting his present position at CSULB in 2000. He received a B.A. in History at the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras, and received a Master’s degree and Ph.D. in Comparative Culture with an emphasis in Sociology (his dissertation was on the political economy of the sugar industry in Puerto Rico) at the University of California at Irvine. His area of expertise is the racialization of Latino identity its impact on political behavior and issues of colonialism and political economy in Puerto Rico. At CSULB he presently teaches courses emphasizing issues in social inequality: Wealth and Poverty in Latino Communities, Chicano/Latino Politics, and on Latina/o Cultural Identity, The Ethnic Experience, and Latino Population in the United States.

His article “The Racialization of Puerto Rican Ethnicity in the United States” was published in the book Ethnicity, Race and Nationality in the Caribbean (Institute of Caribbean Studies, University of Puerto Rico 1997).His research on Chicano and Puerto Rican radical politics in Los Angeles appeared in the book, Latino Social Movements (Routledge 1999).

His journalistic articles have appeared in English and Spanish in the printed and online media. In the printed media, his articles were published in the Orange County Register, Politico Magazine, Counterpunch, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Hispanic Magazine, Union Hispana, Deslindes, Colombia, and the weekly Claridad from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Most notable are “Puerto Ricans Suffer, Minus Political Power” in the LA Times, “Geography as Destiny: Puerto Rico’s 500-year History” in Politico Magazine, “L.A. Election: Prologue or Epilogue? Villaraigosa’s campaign was an anomaly” in Hispanic Magazine the “Puzzle of Race and Politics” in Counterpunch on politics in Puerto Rico and “Puerto Rico: The Invisible and Recurring Social Struggles in the Oldest Colony of the World” in Dissident Voice in June 2010. Recently he published “Social Protest and the Future of Higher Education in Puerto Rico” in ACADEME: Magazine of the American Association of University Professors, July-August, 2011, pp. 26-31. Also “The Genealogy of a Crisis: Puerto Rico and Wall Street’s 21st Century Debt Peonage Imperialism.” Counterpunch February 19, 2014 and “Colonialism and Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Crisis” in Dissident Voice April 5, 2014. Recently, his article “Puerto Rico Social and Economic Crisis: Manufactured by the U.S. published July 1, on the online magazine Dissident Voice. Also, on August 6, NBC News published his Op Ed “Puerto Rico’s Crisis: Let’s Look at U.S. History.”

He also has participated in numerous local and Caribbean radio and television programs.

He is a nationally known consultant diversity trainer. He also writes and lectures about Latino and diversity issues. He works with universities on infusing anti-racist multi cultural objectives in the curriculum and how to recruit, retain faculty of color.

He organized and facilitated “The Way to Empowerment: Latina Women in Electoral Politics in Southern California” a panel at California State University, Long Beach, March 18, 2002. Served as a panelist in a candidate forum in La Mirada with all the candidates from the newly created 39th congressional district in California. He made a presentation “Latinos and Cultural Racism” for the Institute for Democratic Renewal and Project Change (Claremont Graduate University, CA) at their national network meeting at the Ward Room, Summerfield Suites, Seattle, WA on September 20, 2003. He lectured on “The Role of the Puerto Rican Diaspora in Puerto Rico’s Struggle for Independence” at the Eugenio Maria de Hostos Law School in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico on February 23, 2007.He made a keynote presentation on “Anti-Racist Leadership and Strategies for University Presidents” to the 32 presidents and the chancellor of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system sponsored by the office of the Chancellor at the Wells Fargo Place, St. Paul, Minnesota on April 2, 2007. He lectured on “Race and racialization in the Post-Civil Rights Era: Color-Blind Ideology and Communities of Color” sponsored by the History Department, Casa Latina, Latino Studies and Latino student organizations on April 15, 2008 at University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign. In June 2010 he organized a People’s Movement Assembly on self determination for Puerto Rico at the United States Social Forum in Detroit Michigan.

During 1987 and 1990, he served as Associate Director for Studies (Social Science) at the Commission for Church in Society. Dr. Rodriguez later served as Associate Director for Racial Justice Advocacy at the Commission for Multi cultural Ministries. He was responsible for researching social issues and providing social analysis for documents and processes in these units at the national offices of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois.His book Latino Politics in the United States: Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Class in the Mexican American and Puerto Rican Experience was published by Kendall-Hunt, went into a second edition in 2012. This book received an honorable mention by the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights in its 2005 Outstanding Book Awards. A chapter from this manuscript was earlier published (Spring 2005) by CENTRO Journal a refereed Latino Studies journal published by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, CUNY. He recently served as General Editor of Hispanic Leadership: A Concise Reference Guide published by Mission Bell Median in June 2015. His most recent publication is “The Racialization of Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans and Asians, 1890s-1930s” in Eds. John N. Tsuchida, Juan M. Benítez and Dean S. Toji. Education, Youth, Leadership and Labor: Asian Pacific American and Latino Perspectives. Long Beach, CA: Center for Asian Pacific American Studies, 2007. He also co-authored with John N. Tsuchida and Jose F. Moreno. “Racialization of Hispanic and Asian Students in the Educational System: Training Administrators, Teachers and Parents for Policy Changes” Policy Research Paper submitted to the National Educational Association on March 2009.

Books and chapters

His book Latino Politics in the United States: Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Class in the Mexican American and Puerto Rican Experience was published by Kendall-Hunt, June 2005. This book received an honorable mention by the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights in its 2005 Outstanding Book Awards. A chapter from this manuscript was earlier published (Spring 2005) by CENTRO Journal a refereed Latino Studies journal published by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, CUNY. His most recent publication is “The Racialization of Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans and Asians, 1890s-1930s” in Eds. John N. Tsuchida, Juan M. Benítez and Dean S. Toji. Education, Youth, Leadership and Labor: Asian Pacific American and Latino Perspectives. Long Beach, CA: Center for Asian Pacific American Studies, 2007. He also co-authored with John N. Tsuchida and Jose F. Moreno. “Racialization of Hispanic and Asian Students in the Educational System: Training Administrators, Teachers and Parents for Policy Changes” Policy Research Paper submitted to the National Educational Association on March 2009.

More information: Latino Politics in the United States: Race, Ethnicity, Class and Gender in the Mexican American and Puerto Rican Experience