NNMC NEWS RELEASE

 Every summer, along acequias older than the state of New Mexico itself, neighbors gather to share water by consensus in one of the oldest continuously practiced forms of democracy in the Americas. On Friday, October 2, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. the Ben Lujan Library at Northern New Mexico College will host a public conversation that borrows that image to ask a larger question: why does democracy still matter — in an acequia, in a classroom, in a country?

“If democracy ever stops questioning itself, if it settles into a finished system managed by the powerful, it ceases to exist,” said Maria Constanza Garrido Sierralta, who will be moderating the conversation. “True, radical democratic life pervades all facets of society. Democracy is our commitment to continually enact, define and hold space for everyone in our communities and strive for justice and equity.”

Political scientist Jane Anna Gordon and philosopher Lewis Gordon of the University of Connecticut will join Garrido Sierralta for a 40-minute conversation, followed by questions from the audience. The event is free and open to the public.

Jane Anna Gordon is Professor of Political Science and Social and Critical Inquiry at the University of Connecticut. She has authored and edited numerous books — including “Statelessness,” “Contemporary Enslavement” and “Creolizing Political Theory.”

Lewis Gordon is Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and head of the Philosophy Department at the University of Connecticut. He is the author of “What Fanon Said: A Philosophical Introduction to His Life and Thought” and “Bad Faith and Anti-Black Racism.”

Moderator Maria Constanza Garrido Sierralta is Assistant Professor of Integrated Studies at NNMC. She is the co-translator of Cornelius Castoriadis’ “The Greek Imaginary.”

For more information, contact Garrido Sierralta at mcgarridos@nnmc.edu.