Discovering, supporting and promoting
Latino writers and authors in Colorado.
Meet Dr. Irene Blea
Dr. Irene Blea obtained her Ph. D. in Sociology from the University of Colorado-Boulder and taught at Metropolitan State College throughout the 1980s. The award winning poet, scholar and author is credited with defining the curriculum in Chicano and Chicana Studies. Dr. Blea was the first female National Chairperson of the National Association of Chicano Studies. Two of her textbooks, Toward a Chicano Social Science and La Chicana, are considered Classics in the field of race and gender relations. retirement as a Tenured, Full Professor and Chairperson of the first Department of Mexican American Studies at California State University-Los Angles she published textbooks, poetry, over 50 articles, and one play.
About
Dr. Blea has written four novels drawing from the social historical experiences of her U.S. Hispanics. In her latest book, Erené With Wolf Medicine, she writes about her indigenous and Spanish speaking history, its contradictions, and her struggle to regain her indigenous nature by returning to the place where she was born. Community and what happens to it are always factors in her academic and creative work. Her novel, Daughters of the West Mesa brought attention to the issues of murdered and missing women of color and motivated the Albuquerque community to insist on closure to the still unsolved mystery involving the discovery of 11 female remains and an unborn fetus buried in the desert. For this book, Dr. Blea was awarded the BEST of ALBUQUERQUE award in 2015. The author maintains a strong internet presence. Her Chicana! Facebook page has 5,100+ members.
Books
https://www.facebook.com/Irene.blea