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On Thursday, Nov. 7, The University of Tampa will welcome José Manuel Garcia, associate professor of Hispanic literature and Latin American studies at Florida Southern College, to speak about his experiences of the Mariel Boatlift and the documentary film he helped create about the event, Voices from Mariel.

Garcia’s talk, part of the University’s Honors Symposia series, begins at 1 p.m. in the Reeves Theater on the 2nd Floor of the Vaughn Center and is free and open to the public.

From April to September 1980, nearly 125,000 Cuban immigrants, packed in approximately 1,700 boats — many barely sea worthy and unsafely overcrowded — arrived on U.S. soil in search of freedom.

Garcia created an oral history of these events, known as the Mariel Boatlift, and provided the story concept for the award-winning film Voices from Mariel. Told through the previously unheard stories of 10 Cuban-American families, Voices from Mariel brings new insight into the lives of these Cuban-born immigrants who came to the U.S. more than 30 years ago.

For more information, contact the Honors Program at (813) 257-3545.