This summer as an ERI/PS2 Fellow, I worked with the Beyond Acceptance Research Collective (BARC) to explore the creative practices queer, trans, and gender-expansive people are using, and seeking to learn, to resist in this time of rising anti-trans and anti-queer violence, and how these practices can be documented and shared. I helped to found…

If you’re reading this, you’re most likely connected to the internet. And that connection is brought to you by an intricate tapestry of fiber-optic cables that run underground. This layer of interconnected wiring is considered a type of digital infrastructure, and in New York City, this infrastructure does not serve everyone. According to a 2024…

The n’dee, n’nee, or ndé people, more broadly known by the exonym Apaches, used to inhabit and move freely on the land now occupied by the US-Mexico border. In the 1800s, they faced genocidal persecution from both countries. In Mexico, the attempt at extermination led to the silencing of their cultural identity. The Nación N’dee/N’nee/Ndé…

We stood in darkness, as we waited for the third member to arrive at the jetty. We were going to collect the crab nets close to the Penang Strait. One last cigarette before the crab-fisher heads out to ready the boat. It was 6am, and while most Penang-ites are still asleep or just about to…

A part of my research focuses on how urban space – abandoned, derelict, and otherwise – is being reclaimed from purely private and public governance and being put to use for community and collectivizing ends. As an ERI/PS2 fellow, this past summer I had the opportunity to deepen my understanding of how community organizations in…

The following blog entry is a recollection of an archival research project by Lost & Found Fellow and CUNY Graduate Center student Sam O’Hana. Introduction Sam O’Hana created his archival research project on Allen Ginsberg’s IRS tax returns to understand how Ginsberg managed to support himself with the minimal income he received and the point…

Onur Ayaz visited the Charles Olson Research Collection in the Archives & Special Collections at the University of Connecticut in search of the poetry and teachings of Charles Olson, but unexpectedly discovered Olson’s trip to Key West where his poetic genius was born. Read Ayaz’s experiences and findings throughout the duration of his archival research project.

Broadly, my research looks at the psycho-social sequela of colonial and state violence, namely the U.S.- backed civil war in El Salvador (1980-1992). The war left irreparable wounds among the survivors. War trauma travels intergenerationally and it is felt and expressed differently among the children of the survivors. I used the ERI/PS2 fellowship, to (1)…

The ERI/PS2 fellowship allowed me to further develop my dissertation proposal, gain clarity about my research methods rationale and to start preparations for fieldwork. This summer, I engaged in a variety of activities in the U.S., I presented my project at the Society for Qualitative Research in Psychology conference (SQIP), and consulted with a Digital…

The past few months I’ve spent my time having what I’ve been calling a “hot girl dissertation summer” (shout out to Megan Thee Stallion). Mainly, I’ve been focusing on writing and data collection. My dissertation is a qualitative study investigating Black women’s experiences with fertility treatments. It’s been an interesting summer working on a dissertation…

This summer, as a ERI/PS2 Summer Fellow, I collaborated with students to analyze the oral histories we collected. We organized the narratives into themes like immigration, matriarchal figures, and community efforts. We’ve started depositing the oral histories, transcripts, and photos into a public digital archive. Our goal is to make this accessible and collaborative for…

“How can ‘queer housing’ expand the housing struggle for everyone?” “Came out to my landlord as trans (new name, email, ID). He made no fuss, as he raised rent by $150.” “I’m on rent strike.” “Found gay roommates and started organizing our building.” Post-it notes with queer and trans housing stories. These are some of…

It’s easy to romanticize: two quiet weeks perusing the archives with the sunset over the canals to light my walks home. While the reality wasn’t always quite so romantic—hours of mindlessly propping up my phone to take document photos—Amsterdam was nevertheless a wonderful, memorable experience supported by an ERI/ PS2 summer fellowship. Hard to believe…

“May our banner be unfurled over North America,And its renown fill the West and the East.To promote the National EssenceAnd be at the vanguard overseas…” These prayers were recited in front of a small red-and-gold wooden shrine dedicated to the patron saints of Cantonese opera, located backstage at the headquarters of the Chinese Musical and…

My summer as an ERI/PS2 fellow began with a chaotic accident and ended up being one of the most generative research experiences of my life. I went to London to spend three weeks at the George Padmore Institute with Robert Robinson, with whom I am working on a project about the educational and cultural dimensions…

As an ERI/PS2 fellow, I was able to expand upon an ongoing project. After spending the spring semester taking a plant breeding course and working in a peanut breeding lab at North Carolina State University, I was ready to spend the summer outdoors working on the early stages of the Mountain Peanut Project. Throughout the…

On a day in early June, a crowd of young people crammed into a room on the 6th floor at the Graduate Center. Though most of them strangers, a certain degree of familiarity hung in the air as they united around two common experiences. Each of them had “aged out” of the New York City…

As a ERI/PS2 fellow, I conducted an experiential affective autoethnography of queer rave spaces in New York City. When I hear people describe an event as fun I often wonder: What is fun for you? Was the whole experience fun? How did you know you were having fun? While words have an important social purpose…

My summer research as an ERI/PS2 fellow consisted of curriculum development and planning for a 6-week movement school in Los Angeles, CA on the techniques of strategic property ownership research applicable to tenant organizing. The movement school will take place in January 2025 and will be a collaboration between the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project (AEMP), a…

Being born and raised in New York City afforded me the opportunity to learn and work in different environments that speak to my dedication in empowering minoritized communities: ranging from community organizing experiences to art and to academic endeavors.  As an ERI/PS2 fellow, my work has stretched beyond academia, and I see my approach to…

The ERI/Public Scholarship Practice Space (PS2) fellowship supported my travel to Miami, Florida to conduct preliminary dissertation research. I have been engaged in research in Miami through my work on Dr. William Solecki’s project that examines the climate resilience needs of small businesses and homeowners. Additionally, through a preliminary dissertation proposal, I researched the climate…

As an ERI/PS2 Fellow, I dedicated my summer to conducting research for the final chapter of my dissertation and its accompanying public-facing podcast episode. In this chapter, I argue for a mode of kinship-making and caregiving that must not necessarily remain rooted within the confines of the heterosexual colonial nuclear family. Toward this end, I…

“Draw me a map of the city of Puerto Barrios.” A curved brown line cuts across the white paper, curling into a looping spiral with blue lettering spidering along its edges naming banks, hospitals, etc. This line representing the city emerges from the northern left corner, where a row of Guatemalan flags mark the communities…

During the summer of 2024, I had the opportunity to expand the first chapter of my dissertation, titled, Individualmente no vamos a conseguir nada: Colectividad, Territorio y Justicia en la Participación de las Madres de Soacha en la Creación Colectiva de “Antígonas, tribunal de Mujeres” (Collectivity, Territory, and Justice in the Participation of the Madres…