Kicking off a ten-day celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, Latin American writer Ariel Dorfman will deliver his speech "To Be Completely, Absolutely, and Irreversibly Bilingual: A Curse or a Blessing?" at 7 p.m. in the Hopkins Center's Moore Theater.
"The keynote speaker helps frame the entire schedule," Director of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Ozzie Harris said. And in addressing a theme of "How Large the Dream: (Dis)location and the Human Spirit," Dorfman proved an ideal choice, Harris said.
A professor of literature and Latin American Studies at Duke University, Dorfman's work has focused on political and cultural identity.
Moreover, the award-winning author and playwright's work comes out of his personal experiences with political exile, cultural identity and bilingualism.
Because of their Jewish heritage, his parents were forced to flee Eastern Europe, and settled in Argentina, where Dorfman was born. But early in Dorfman's life, the family was exiled, and moved to the United States and later Chile.
In Chile, his work as a political writer forced him to flee in 1973 as a military coup seized power, and Dorfman moved to Europe and later returned to the United States.
"My life has consisted of a series of encounters with death and is fundamentally about how I've escaped death. But in escaping death, I also had to escape my country. So I went into exile and became the person I now am," Dorfman said in an interview with The Progressive.
These experiences have given him insights into issues of cultural identity and the role of language in shaping his identity, which he has explored in various novels, political essays, poems and plays.
It was these experiences and insights that led the planning committee to turn to Dorfman as they searched for a keynote speaker who could address issues of national origin, language and cultural identity.
They decided Dorfman "would be excellent for his ability to have that discussion and help us think about a variety of issues associated with human rights and civil rights," Harris said.
The committee hopes Dorfman's speech will open up the central question the week's events address, how large Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream truly is.
"Does the dream simply extend to U.S. borders, or is it larger? What types of people does it include? Women, gays and lesbians, bilingual speakers?" Harris asked.
"Take a step back as an individual and ask yourself that question -- how inclusive of a community are we?" he continued.
According to Harris, the question 'how large is the dream?' hasn't been answered very fully or effectively in the past, but Dorfman's speech and other events this week will open up the dialogue once again.
Dorfman's experiences in moving between nations, facing political oppression and dealing with new cultures and languages will form the basis of his speech, Harris said.
Dorfman's speech and other events form "a really special time for the community both in an intellectual way and in a human way," Harris said.
He described the speech as "a time that pulls us together as a community and has us reflect on...historical and contemporary issues related to King's experience and anyone's experience."
