Published: April 8, 2021

In May 1974, six Chicanx students and activists affiliated with CU Boulder were killed in car bombings near campus during a three-week period in which students occupied the Temporary Building No. 1, demanding equity in education at the university.

To continue fostering engaged dialogue on campus about the legacy of the deaths of Los Seis de Boulder (The Boulder Six), campus partners are organizing “Los Seis de Boulder, Race and Memory,” a symposium to bring the historic tragedy into the academic discourse. This symposium is bringing this historical event into multimedia and multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary dialogue including the academic, artistic/performative, and collective/community memory to better understand this tragedy. 

“This symposium will bring a wide variety of presentations, performances and panels to understand, center, and engage in the legacy of Los Seis de Boulder in Chicanx and Latinx communities both now and historically,” said Ashlyn Velte, interim head of archives and Jessie de la Cruz, music and recorded sound archivist in a joint statement.

In 2019, over 200 students and community members honored the Los Seis de Boulder with a sculpture, to bear witness to the struggles and activism of the Chicana/o community at Boulder and to highlight their visions and sacrifices made in the cause for a more just world.

As part of the university’s ongoing commitment to providing current and future students, faculty and staff opportunities to learn more about this important chapter in Colorado and university history, the University Libraries Archives acquired the sculpture as part of its permanent collections.

"This memory project is a way to bear witness to the struggles and activism of the Chicana/o community at Boulder and to highlight their visions and sacrifices made in the cause for a more just world," said Enrique Sepúlveda, assistant professor in the Department of Ethnic Studies.

We are welcoming proposals from our CU Boulder faculty, students, and staff as well as the greater community. Suggested topics may include (but are not limited to):

  • CU Boulder’s role in the Chicano movement

  • The cultural context of the deaths of Los Seis de Boulder

  • Race and memory in university histories and landscapes

  • Teaching Los Seis de Boulder in the university or K-12 classroom settings

  • The history of the Chicanx and Latinx community at CU Boulder

  • Performances or visual art influenced by the story of the bombings

Successful proposals will demonstrate familiarity with the history or legacy of the Los Seis de Boulder bombings and represent diverse campus and community constituents, research areas and viewpoints.

The virtual symposium will take place Nov. 5-6, 2021.

The deadline for proposals has been extended to June 18, 2021. Direct questions about the symposium or proposal submission process to Megan Friedel.

Submit your proposal

This event is organized and co-sponsored by the University of Colorado Boulder’s University Libraries, Center for Humanities & the Arts, Ethnic Studies Department, History Department, the Latino History Project, and UMAS y MEXA.