This institute focused on the idea of students imagining their own “positive social futures” through an exploration of futurism. The concept of Latinfuturism has grown out of and built upon the legacy of Afrofuturism in popular and literary cultures. We explored how bringing futurism from different cultures into the classroom allows us to imagine future possibilities for ourselves, our communities, and our earth.
Throughout the week participants dived deeply into “geek culture” and connected to the popular cultures that often captivate our students, from video games, to anime, to comic books, to science fiction, to fantasy. Our core texts reframed and reappropriated the dominant narrative and placed female protagonists of color at the center of their stories.