Nicaraguan literary giant and revolutionary Sergio Ramirez to lecture during visit to Fairfield University | Press Releases

Fairfield University's Program in Latin American and Caribbean Studies will host a visit from and lecture by Sergio Ramírez, former vice president of Nicaragua and a major Latin American literary figure. The event is held in collaboration with University College and the College of Arts and Sciences. The lecture, "The Sandinista Revolution and Beyond," is open to the public and will be held on Tuesday, March 25 at 7 p.m. in the Barone Campus Center Oak Room. There will be a book signing following the lecture. Admission is free.

University College Dean Edna F. Wilson who was recently named associate vice president for Global Relationships and Community Engagement and is currently in Nicaragua for the university, said of the Ramírez visit, "We, at the university, are very pleased for the opportunity to welcome a figure of Mr. Ramírez's stature in Latin American politics and the arts to our campus. Fairfield University's mission to strengthen our global relationships and expand our knowledge of the world is enhanced through his visit."

A political and social activist and novelist for more than 30 years, Ramírez, as a university student, co-founded the literary journal, "Ventana" and became one of the leading figures of the literary movement bearing the same name.

Dr. Marie-Agnès Sourieau, director of the Program in Latin American & Caribbean Studies at the University said, "The Program is honored to receive Mr. Ramírez who has such a distinguished career as a statesman and as a prominent writer. His visit strengthens the ties Fairfield University has established in Nicaragua with our ongoing faculty research programs and student learning opportunities."

In 1977, he was one of the founders of "The Twelve," a group of Nicaraguan artists and intellectuals struggling against the Somoza dynasty's dictatorship. After the triumph of the Sandinista revolution in 1979, he was Nicaragua's vice president to Daniel Ortega's presidency from 1984-1990.

He has published stories, novels and poetry and continues his work as a journalist for a number of Spanish-language newspapers throughout the world.

Among his many honors and affiliations, Ramírez is the recipient of the 1988 "Bruno Kreisky Human Rights Prize" and was named "Chevalier du l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1993. In 2004, he was awarded the "Medalla Presidencial by the Chilean government to mark the hundredth birthday of Pablo Neruda. Ramírez is also a leading member of the FNPI (Fundación Nuevo Periodismo Iberoamericano), which was established by Gabriel García Marquéz.

Ramírez has lectured at universities in the United States, Europe and Latin America. He was a guest professor at the University of Maryland in 1999 and 2000. In 2001, he was Samuel Fischer Professor for comparative literature at Berlin's Free University.

The lecture is co-sponsored with the department of modern languages and literatures and the history department.

For further information, please contact professor Javier Campos at (203) 254-4000, ext. 2351 or by e-mail at jcampos@mail.fairfield.edu .