The Zoot Suit–an oversized suit with broad shoulders, a 'drape shape' and pegged pants popular among young men in the 1940s–was infamous for its role in the 1943 Los Angeles riot, in which white servicemen attacked Mexican-American zooters and literally tore the clothes off their backs.  What is the relationship between fashion and social action, style and resistance?  This lecture revisits the zoot suit, as clothing and as cultural and political symbol.

Hosted by:  Graduate School of Library and Information Science

In conjunction with:  African American Studies and Research Program, Asian American Studies Program, Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Department of History, Department of Sociology, Department of Theatre, Gender and Women's Studies Program, Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities, Institute of Communications Research, Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, Latina/Latino Studies Program, Unit for Criticism and Interpretive Theory