“A people who are educated,” José Martí wrote, “are a people who will always be free.” In Nuestra America, Martí’s 1891 manifesto on liberation, he noted the importance of education as a means to navigate political and social upheaval. “We see colossal dangers; we see simple and wonderful ways of avoiding them.” In a moment, this moment, when the institutions, politics, and intellectual support for education in the United States are shifting, teaching the past has never been more important. This roundtable discussion brings together historians of Latin America to discuss and share pedagogical approaches to teaching the past in this moment. The discussion will emphasize how to teach past to understand the present.

Inspired by a rich tradition of Latin American pedagogy, from Simón Rodríguez to José Paulo Paulo Freire, the roundtable panelists will discuss how to teach the past through experience, empathy and radicalism. How, for instance, can historians use experience as a means to counter artificial digital technologies? What does understanding empathy in the past reveal about experiences in the present? How can material and cross-cultural experiences promote empathy in the present and advance understandings of the past? And, how can transformative historical moments shape radial advances to the future?

Roundtable participants will share course materials, activities, and specific pedagogical strategies based on teaching at distinct institutions, from small liberal arts colleges and regional state colleges to “public ivys” and flagship state universities. Bringing together historians of diverse rank, experience, and interests, this session will address ways to consider the current moment and the role of historians in advancing empathy.