Hector Tobar to speak on Latino power, immigration

UO journalism professor Héctor Tobar will speak in Eugene as part of Oregon Humanities’ series of conversations with Pulitzer Prize–winning writers, talking about immigration, nationalism, patriotism and Latino political power.

Tobar will appear at Cozmic, 199 W. Eighth Ave., on Wednesday, April 20. The event begins at 7 p.m. and doors open at 6 p.m. The event is all-ages. Tickets are $6 in advance at cozmicproductions.com or $8 at the door.

Tobar has reported stories from the streets of East Los Angeles, São Paulo, and Baghdad. During his two decades writing for the Los Angeles Times he was part of the reporting team that won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the 1992 Los Angeles riots and served as bureau chief in Buenos Aires and Mexico City.

His most recent book, “Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free,” recounts the aftermath of the 2010 cave-in at the San José Mine in Copiapé, Chile, that trapped 33 miners 2,000 feet underground for 69 days. All of the miners were rescued; they chose Tobar to tell their story. A film adaptation of the book, The 33, was released in 2015.

Tobar is also the author of “Translation Nation: Defining a New American Identity in the Spanish-Speaking United States” and two novels, “The Tattooed Soldier” and “The Barbarian Nurseries.”

Oregon Humanities is an independent, nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities and a partner of the Oregon Cultural Trust.