Episode Thirty-Eight - H. Rafael Chacon

The State of Montana

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Episode Thirty-Eight - H. Rafael Chacon

Executive Director of the Montana Museum of Art and Culture at the University of Montana

Russell Rowland

Sep 17, 2024

Transcript

I had the great pleasure of hearing Rafael Chacon give a couple of talks in Glacier Park last month. Rafael has been the executive director of the Montana Museum of Art and Culture at the University of Montana for five years, and his knowledge and thoughtful insights into the role that art has played in the history of the West is absolutely fascinating. As an immigrant from Cuba when he was a young boy, he also has a very interesting personal story. He has a Doctorate in Art History from the University of Chicago, and he has been teaching Art History at the University of Montana for over thirty years.

Thank you to Buchanan Capital for sponsoring this podcast, and to Phil Aaberg for his musical accompaniment.

Discussion about this podcast

The State of Montana

Montana has a long history of very complicated politics, often influenced by major corporations, as with the Copper Kings in our early history, or oil money. But we also have a strong track record of very progressive milestones, the most significant of which was the election of the first woman to ever serve in Congress, Jeanette Rankin. We also have what most constitutional historians consider one of the strongest state constitutions in the country. We have always boasted a very significant balance of power as well, but recently that has changed, and I want to understand why, and what can be done about it. So I'm going to interview some of our more high-profile citizens, not necessarily politicians, to explore this issue. My first guest will be Dorothy Bradley, who was the first woman to run for governor of the state. Dorothy just barely lost to Marc Racicot in 1992.

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