The Program: “Brexit: Its Origins and its Future” – In June 2016, the British voted to leave the European Union. It was the first of several shocks to the established political system that year, and it was potentially one of the most far-reaching, with political and economic consequences that extend far beyond Britain itself. This talk will explore the history of the relationship between Britain and Europe, the Brexit vote and its aftermath, the current state of the debate, and the significance of Brexit for U.S. politics.

Presenter: Caleb Richardson received his Ph.D. from Stanford University.  He is revising his manuscript, “Neutral Combatants: Irishness and the Second World War,” for publication.  His work has appeared in New Hibernia Review/ Iris Éire-Ireland, Siar and Stanford Magazine, and he regularly presents at conferences on Irish and British history and to various local and community groups.  His current research focuses on two subjects: first, the attempted invasions of Canada in the late 1860’s by the Irish-American nationalist group known as the Fenians, and, second, the fate of the people known to everyone except themselves as the “Anglo-Irish” after Irish independence.  His teaching interests center on modern, medieval and early modern Irish and British history, historiography, the history of “Diaspora,” the history of class, and Western Civilization.  He is the Honors Advisor for the History Department, the Secretary-Treasurer of the American Conference on Irish Studies-West, the faculty sponsor of the Historical Society of UNM, an undergraduate history interest group, and the directory fo the UNM History Department Colloquium.