Route 66 and the Uneven American Dream
Student research explores how the historic highway symbolized freedom for some Americans more than others.
University of La Verne students explored how U.S. Route 66 shaped ideas about mobility, opportunity and the American Dream during a May 26 presentation at Hillcrest in La Verne.
The presentation, “Race, Mobility, and the Uneven American Dream,” was hosted by the Cultural Awareness and Social Inclusion committee, a local nonprofit, also known as CASI.
Ana Eugenia Lopez Ricoy, assistant professor of sociology at the university, described how Route 66 came to represent ideals of “freedom, adventure, progress.” She said the highway connected communities across the country and served as a major alternative to rail travel before losing relevance after the interstate freeway system expanded. Route 66 was officially decommissioned in 1984.
Students from the University of La Verne Race and Ethnicity class present their research on "Race, Mobility, and the Uneven American Dream" at Hillcrest in La Verne May 26. (Photo 1) Sydney Delfin, Olivia Montoya-Lopez and Kendall Siebels. (Photo 2) Sayleigh Ortiz and Emma Garcia. (Photo 3) Ethan Ball and Del Bently. (Photo 4) Esabella Estrella. (Photo 5) Seciliah Torres and Alexa Medina. (Photo 6) Daniel Solano and Abraham Orlando Arroyo. (Last photo) CASI Corresponding Secretary Rebekah Hong shares a bit of La Verne history. Photos by Staci Baird/La Verne Daily News
CASI Corresponding Secretary Rebekah Hong said the project aligned with the committee’s mission of creating “a safe space where all people are welcome, respected, cared for, and treated with kindness and compassion.”
“Cultural awareness and social inclusion includes the hard work of digging back into the roots of history,” Hong said.
Lopez Ricoy explained that the project was designed to bring classroom conversations about race and ethnicity into the broader community through a community engagement component tied to her course. Students spent eight weeks researching topics and creating posters for the presentation.
