Thom Rath, Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow and visiting assistant professor of history, gave two papers in October. At the conference of the Latin American Studies Association in Toronto, he presented research examining the effects of military reform on gender roles and state legitimacy in Mexico in the 1930s and 40s. This paper contributes to larger debates about the effects of the Revolution of 1910-20 on gender, and the limits of postrevolutionary demilitarization.
Rath also participated in the workshop titled "Teaching the Mexican Revolution," at the New York State Latin American History Workshop, in Rochester. He discussed the possibilities and problems of teaching the history of modern Mexico in the context of Mexico's current "war on drugs" and the centenary of the Revolution. Rath will be teaching a seminar class on revolutionary Mexico in the spring semester.
