University Lecture Discusses Violence Against Latina Immigrants

Sociologist, activist and Fulbright Scholar Roberta Villalón, Ph.D., will speak at The University of Scranton this month on “Violence Against Latina Immigrants: Persistent Inequalities and Change.” The lecture, which is free of charge and open to the public, is scheduled for Thursday, April 14, at 5:30 p.m. in the PNC Auditorium of the Loyola Science Center.

The presentation will focus on factors that affect many Latina immigrant women particularly vulnerable to abuse. They are caught between violent partners, bureaucratic complications and an unequal structure of the U.S. immigration system. Dr. Villalón’s research of Latina survivors of domestic abuse explores the complexities that arise when immigration, citizenship and violence intermingle and shows how inequality is perpetrated.

An associate professor and chair of the sociology and anthropology department at St. John’s University in New York City, Dr. Villalón has long been committed to working for social justice within and across geographical borders. She volunteered for two years at a nonprofit group that offered free legal services to immigrant victims of domestic violence. She has written several journal articles as well as a book on this issue.

Dr. Villalón’s lecture at the University is sponsored by the Office of Equity and Diversity, the Department of Latin American and Women’s Studies, the Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice and Criminology and Education for Justice.