“Now What?”: Drowning in the American Dream Mural

Abstract

“Drowning in the American Dream” is a mural produced at Cal State LA, painted by Claudio Talavera-Ballón, a Peruvian artist based in the Bay Area, depicting the challenges of migrant border crossings.The project originated in a collaboration between faculty and students of the Latin American Studies Student association (LASS) and the artist, with the Dreamer Center and the Cross-Cultural Center, and co-sponsored by the Sociology Department, the College of Natural and Social Sciences (NSS), the College of Ethnic Studies, the Ethnic Studies Student Group (ESSG) and the University Library, hosted by the Special Collections and Archives Division. The mural project culminated in an inauguration event at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Library at Cal State LA in the Fall of 2022.