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From January to April 2026, the Faculty of Arts has been hosting , as a Fulbright Scholar in the Department of History. Her residence arrives at a moment of renewed public debate about borders, sovereignty and U.S. power. Dr. Rodríguez sees clear parallels between the anxieties of the 1860s and those of today. 

“Both Mexico and Canada have reasons to be anxious about potential U.S. violations of their sovereignty,” she notes, pointing to recent political rhetoric about annexation or military intervention. “My project aims to supply a historical perspective to the events of today.” 

Dr. Rodríguez is an assistant professor of history at Florida Gulf Coast University and a leading scholar of North American borderlands, sovereignty and comparative nation‑building. Her recently published book, One National Family: Texas, Mexico, and the Making of the Modern United States, 1821–1867, reconsiders the United States’ rise to continental dominance by placing Mexico and the U.S. in direct comparison.  

Looking northward 

Rodríguez’ residency at U��֦��Ƶ builds on her earlier research through a project comparing Canadian and Mexican responses to U.S. territorial expansion in the 1860s. She focuses this comparative lens northward, arguing that Canada and Mexico, though often studied separately, faced parallel pressures as they navigated an expansionist United States. 

Although historians often characterize the nineteenth century as an age of republican ideals, the experiences of Canada and Mexico complicate this narrative. At the very moment the U.S. claimed to champion republicanism, its neighbors increasingly viewed European imperial alliances as a safer alternative. In the 1860s, Canada embraced an alliance with Britain and some sectors in Mexico aligned with Europe during the French Intervention and the short-lived Empire of the Austrian archduke Maximilian.  

“The experiences of Mexico and Canada show that U.S. expansion actually had the opposite effect,” Rodríguez argues, “by compelling its neighbors to embrace the safety of European imperialism rather than break away from it.” 

Rodríguez hypothesizes that these choices emerged from a shared anxiety around an emerging U.S. empire, a desire for powerful allies and declining faith in the durability of republican governance. 

For Canadian scholars and students, this comparative approach opens new possibilities. “There’s a tendency to view Canada as the exception that proves the rule,” Rodríguez says. “But hopefully my work will reveal surprising connections between Canada, Mexico and perhaps the rest of the Western Hemisphere that haven’t been considered before.” 

U��֦��Ƶ: A great fit 

U��֦��Ƶ’s History Department is a great fit for Rodríguez’ work. She has eagerly immersed herself in the university’s archives and special collections and has drawn on the expertise of colleagues whose research intersects with her own.  

“Frank Towers has published extensively on North American politics and nation‑building. Amelia Kiddle and Hendrik Kraay are both experts in Latin America. Kevin Anderson and David Marshall have helped me navigate the Canadian historiography. And Beau Cleland just published a book on the Civil War and the South’s relationship with Great Britain,” she says. “In addition to being excellent scholars, they are all extremely collegial.” 

Department head notes that Rodríguez’s work aligns closely with the department’s strengths. “Dr. Rodríguez works at the intersection of U.S., Mexican and borderlands history, with a particular focus on how political culture, migration and ideas about nationhood shaped North America in the nineteenth century,” he says. “Her comparative Canada–Mexico–U.S. framework adds a southern North American perspective that is usually absent from Canadian historiography.” 

“The Faculty of Arts has a proud tradition of hosting Fulbright Scholars, who make an important contribution to internationalization at U��֦��Ƶ and strengthen our researchers’ international research networks,“ says , Associate Dean, Research and Communities. 

Rodríguez' Fulbright residency makes it possible to take a deeper look at current conversations about North America. “Putting Canada in the same frame as Mexico destabilizes the comfortable story of Canada as the ‘good,’ peaceful neighbour,” Says Chastko. “It highlights that Canadian nation‑building was one of several experiments in managing empire, race and territory in a continent dominated by U.S. ambition and European interests.” 

By placing Canada and Mexico side‑by‑side, Dr. Rodríguez’s research reveals patterns of anxiety and resistance that echo into today’s conversations about borders, sovereignty and power. Her comparative approach is a reminder that historical research helps us interpret contemporary challenges with greater clarity. 

To learn more, join Dr. Rodríguez on April 7, as she presents .