Amid the youth-led movements of the 1960s and 1970s, Brown and Black students at the University of Houston fought to establish places that would critically shape research, learning, and student activism: the Center for Mexican American Studies and African American Studies. In this talk, Dr. Samantha M. Rodriguez will discuss how both gender and race liberation was central to the struggle to create ethnic studies hubs in Houston, and the relevancy of these fights today.

The Heritage Society will host guest speaker Dr. Samantha Rodriguez at a Lunch and Learn event on Thursday, September 18, 2025, at noon at the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Museum Gallery at 1100 Bagby Street in Houston. Rodriguez, History and Humanities Professor with Houston Community College, will give a lecture in demand titled “Brown and Black Place-Making: Forging Race and Gender Power in Houston” in observance of Hispanic Heritage Month.

Members are free. Non-members are $10. Bring your lunch! Boxed lunches are also available for $13, from the delicious Tres Market.