Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons^™

Architectural + Language: Breaking Barriers And Creating Cultural Dialogue, Maria De Los Angeles Delgado Bailon

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

When I was 11 years old, I moved back to the United States, after having spent my whole childhood in Ecuador, my parents native land. I was moving back to the land of opportunity in the search for the so called ‘American Dream’. It was difficult to leave and move to a new place where we did not know anyone or have anything, but just the idea of a going back to my hometown piqued my curiosity and excitement. I remember very vividly, the day I left Ecuador. I remember telling myself to be happy, because this was a moment …

Constructing The Panama Canal: A Brief History, Ian E. Phillips

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

Seeking to commemorate the construction of the Panama Canal, an engineering marvel widely considered a contender for the eighth wonder of the world, this article attempts to retell the story of the Canal's construction by synthesizing a narrative centered on the Canal under French and American leadership, worker segregation, and labor conditions at the Isthmus.

Natural Law And Latinx Social Ethics: A Narrative Approach, Mathew D. Scruggs

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation will argue concepts rooted in Latinx social ethics provides a corrective to acontextual and ahistorical, Euroamerican natural law frameworks by positing natural law as a type of moral reasoning rooted in the contexts, histories, and narratives of particular communities. Rooting natural law in the narrative practices of Latinx communities not only reveals the need for justice for oppression against Latinx bodies from the wider community, but also offers a corrective to ahistorical and acontextual Euroamerican natural law frameworks. A Latinx natural law functions as a radical and prophetic critique against systems of oppression that destroy the lives of …

Worse Than Birmingham: How Segregationists In Danville Obstructed The Civil Rights Movement, Lauren E. Oakes

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis explores the civil rights movement in Danville, Virginia, and focuses on the tactics employed by prominent white men who, because they controlled the city’s leading institutions of power, were able to effectively squelch the movement by the end of the 1963 summer. This paper also traces how the Danville movement followed the path of the classical phase of the national civil rights movement, and represents the manner in which broader trends and events played out in small southern cities. The Danville movement began with a student-led sit-in at the whites only public library a few months after the …

The. Broken. Gay. Chicanx. Grind., Damon R. Carbajal

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

No abstract provided.

White On The Outside | Brown On The Inside, Damon R. Carbajal

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

This poem is one of a trio of poems published in this volume titled, “at the interSEXtion of being GAY and CHICANX: Un Trío de Poemas,” that dive into what it means growing up as a gay, Chicanx light-skinned in the current times post the moviemento and through the strides of the queer liberation movement. The poems explore many facets of living at this intersection including, but not limited to, toxic masculinities, queerphobia, mental health, sexual assault, pride, etc. The poems also explore the notion of what it means to be mestiza as Mexicano and White and how this further …

Nothing Above, Everything Below: Zumbadores De La Sierra Jémez, Enrique R. Lamadrid

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

"Nothing Above, Everything Below" is a "species poem" dedicated to the two kinds of "zoomers" that frequented Rudolfo Anaya's casita in Jémez Springs in the summertime. He was deeply inspired by the Jémez mountains, its peoples and creatures. Hummingbirds are so fascinating to all, that they easily become commonplace. Clichés when writing about them are difficult to overcome. This is the story of the two zumbadores (Sp.) that migrate to breed in northern boreal forests. They do not hum, but rather zoom between cultures, between life and death. This memorial tribute honors Anaya and his great generosity. He made his …

El Paso Segundo Barrio Muralism: Barrio History, Memory, And Identity In Community Artwork, Eduardo García

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

The border city of El Paso, Texas has a longstanding tradition of muralism in one of its oldest neighborhoods- the downtown Segundo Barrio. Though these manifestations have not received as much scholarly attention as other borderland muralist traditions, they echo a similar theme of community artwork focused on sociohistorical issues, cultural memory, and barrio identity relevant to their geopolitical space. Through a study of mural artists and programs in the downtown El Paso area, I view the use of specific iconography and themes as expressions of Segundo Barrio history, memory, and identity. These artists have continued a lineage of …

To The Studio, In The Studio, Home, Miquel R. Veldkamp

Theses and Dissertations

A curated series of poems and mini essays that reflect on personal life, politics, art history, folklore, science, identity and race. It addresses the questions that inform my work, and echoes its ethos of play, exploration, curiosity, vulnerability.

Aztlán Del Sol, Marcus Zúñiga

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

An artistic writing developed from the themes and concepts of an of art installation made by a visual artist of Mexican-American descent from New Mexico. The work references the relationship of Aztec mythology to the American Southwest, art theoretical discourse in object oriented ontology and aesthetics, and key ideas in astronomy. Additionally interwoven is an expanded sense for interpreting ancestry and history under the constructs of multicultural conceptions of time, specifically cultures with notable spiritual rituals of Sun worship and observation.

Epistemologías Muertas, Luis Oswaldo Esparza

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

No abstract provided.

Cosmic Desert Art, Mike Graham De La Rosa

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

The Cosmic Desert are the designs inspired by chile hallucinations, desert creatures, and the long weird neon nights in the Borderworld. Made with love on the banks of the Rio Grande.

My family is originally from Northern Mexico but I grew up in Northern New Mexico down river of both where Al Hurricane and Nuclear Annihilation were originally created. Amongst chollas, rattle snakes, and river willow, the imagining of New Mexico permeates the landscapes. The Cosmic Desert is inhabited lowriders, taco trucks, neon adobe bars, cholas, native peoples, immigrants, punk rockers and cowboys. Just beyond the darkness, our imagination takes …

Intersextional Pride, Damon R. Carbajal

Chamisa: A Journal of Literary, Performance, and Visual Arts of New Mexico and the Greater Southwest

This poem is one of a trio of poems published in this volume titled, “at the interSEXtion of being GAY and CHICANX: Un Trío de Poemas,” that dive into what it means growing up as a gay, Chicanx light-skinned in the current times post the moviemento and through the strides of the queer liberation movement. The poems explore many facets of living at this intersection including, but not limited to, toxic masculinities, queerphobia, mental health, sexual assault, pride, etc. The poems also explore the notion of what it means to be mestiza as Mexicano and White and how this further …

Studying The Relationship Between Ethnic Identity And Resiliency: A Broad Approach, Mary Zheng

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Ethnic minorities in the United States face prejudice and racial discrimination, causing feelings of distress. However, ethnic minorities have shown an ability to overcome these negative experiences. Racial identity has been associated with more adjustments and higher functioning for ethnic minorities. To gain a clearer understanding of this phenomenon, we included White people in this study to gain an accurate picture of how resiliency operates differently for people of color and Whites and if it is indeed distinct between the two groups. The purpose of this project is to find and examine the link between ethnic identity and resiliency in …

Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind: Analyzing Inhumane Practices In Mississippi’S Correctional Institutions Due To Overcrowding, Understaffing, And Diminished Funding, Ariel A. Williams

Honors Theses

The purpose of this research is to examine the political, social, and economic factors which have led to inhumane conditions in Mississippi’s correctional facilities. Several methods were employed, including a comparison of the historical and current methods of funding, staffing, and rehabilitating prisoners based on literature reviews. State-sponsored reports from various departments and the legislature were analyzed to provide insight into budgetary restrictions and political will to allocate funds. Statistical surveys and data were reviewed to determine how overcrowding and understaffing negatively affect administrative capacity and prisoners’ mental and physical well-being. Ultimately, it may be concluded that Mississippi has high …

In With A Runny Nose, Out In A Body Bag: Why Is It So Difficult For Black Women To Leave The Hospital Alive?, Chelsea Carter

Liberal Arts Capstones

In the Black community, there is an unspoken understanding about going to the doctor with a runny nose, and leaving in a body bag. A recent article published by The Oprah Magazine demonstrates that racism is rampant in the United States healthcare system, and it is taking the lives of Black women at an alarmingly disproportionate rate (Stallings, 2018). When seeking medical treatment, many Black women are at the mercy of doctors who hold an implicit bias against Black women. Simply put, implicit bias describes when people behave and treat others based on negative preconceptions they have about other people, …

Untold Stories Of The African Diaspora: The Lived Experiences Of Black Caribbean Immigrants In The Greater Hartford Area, Shanelle A. Jones

University Scholar Projects

The African Diaspora represents vastly complex migratory patterns. This project studies the journeys of English-speaking Afro-Caribbeans who immigrated to the US for economic reasons between the 1980s-present day. While some researchers emphasize the success of West Indian immigrants, others highlight the issue of downward assimilation many face upon arrival in the US. This paper explores the prospect of economic incorporation into American society for West Indian immigrants. I conducted and analyzed data from an online survey and 10 oral histories of West Indian economic migrants residing in the Greater Hartford Area to gain a broader perspective on the economic attainment …

Belief And Belonging: A Case Study Of The Maronite In San Antonio, Texas, Rose Karam

Theses & Dissertations

This study focuses on a religious group in America and how it has managed to engage the third and fourth generations who have assimilated into the American cultural milieu while maintaining allegiance to the Church of Lebanon-the Maronite Catholic church. Understanding the history of the Lebanese American people and their connection to this Church is essential when studying this group because it offers a deep awareness of the existing phenomena in America, the natural progression of an immigrant population, and its subsequent generation’s progression into the American society. Most of these individuals in this study are the descendants of the …

Space-Praxis: Towards A Feminist Politics Of Design, Mary C. Overholt

Masters of Environmental Design Theses

Outside of the academy and professionalized practice, design has long been central to the production of feminist, political projects. Taking what I have termed space-praxis as its central analytic, this project explores a suite of feminist interventions into the built environment—ranging from the late 1960s to present day.

Formulated in response to Michel de Certeau’s theory of spatial practices, space-praxis collapses formerly bifurcated definitions of ‘tactic’/‘strategy’ and ‘theory’/‘practice.’ It gestures towards those unruly, situated undertakings that are embedded in an ever-evolving, liberative politics. In turning outwards, away from the so-called masters of architecture, this thesis orients itself toward everyday practitioners …

Aztlán Potentialities: Queer Male Chicanx Affect And Temporalities, Ethan Trejo

English (MA) Theses

While there has been much critical attention paid to Aztlán, the mythical/historical Chicanx homeland, there is still work to be done in combatting the entrenched heteronormativity of Aztlán and of chicanidad more broadly. This thesis, born from my own identity as a queer Chicanx male, considers the potentialities of queer male Chicanx affect and temporalities, offering an affective turn as a resistance model to the heteronormativity that plagues the queer male Chicanx. The first chapter establishes a critical intervention in the field by putting Cherríe Moraga’s dream of a “Queer Aztlán” in conversation with the queer futurity framework that José …

The New Beginnings Newsletter, May 2021, Wokini Initiative

Wokini Initiative: The New Beginnings Newsletter

Senior Sierra Smith - Spring Graduation 2021
Lakota Word of the Month
Book of the Month: The Night Watchman
Upcoming Events @ AISC
Open Positions

Seeking Asylum In A Modern Society: Global Responses To Latin American Migration, Rebecca Dickinson

Senior Honors Projects

The United States is no stranger to asylum seekers and refugees. The most famous seaport in the country houses a 305-foot-tall statue of a woman bearing a torch with words from the poem The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus etched at her feet: “‘Give me your tired, your poor, /Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’”^[1] The Statue of Liberty is a symbolic representation of open arms to immigrants from all walks of life. But if everyone is welcome, why do so few actually gain entrance?

US interventionism policies in the 20th century have defined the lives of millions …

The Disparities Of The Marginalized: Focusing Race And Queerness In Science And Medicine, Kearby Stiles

Honors College Theses

The United States is an immensely diverse country in which certain groups have been—and continue to be—marginalized in society because of their differences. Science and healthcare are areas in which marginalized peoples are negatively affected by a society that punishes difference and diversity. This is an immense problem because in biological and medical school education, in clinical research, and medical practices, little attention is given to marginalized populations. In this paper, I focus on the disadvantages faced by people of color, trans, and intersex people. I decided to focus on race because the history and current state of racism in …

In Search Of Ourselves, We Find Each Other, Kalyn Fay Barnoski

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

in search of ourselves, we find each other is a fully collaborative, multi-platform exhibit centered on developing and locating relationships to both self and community. Challenging societal individualism, the exhibit focuses on collective, relational creativity using Indigenous methodologies for community. It is about me. It is about you. It is about us.

Sovereignty, Statehood, And Subjugation: Native Hawaiian And Japanese American Discourse Over Hawaiian Statehood, Nicole Saito

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Although discourse over Hawaiian statehood has increasingly been described by scholars as a racial conflict between Japanese Americans and Native Hawaiians, there existed a broad spectrum of interactions between the two groups. Both communities were forced to confront the prejudices they had against each other while recognizing their shared experiences with discrimination, creating a paradoxical political culture of competition and solidarity up until the conclusion of World War Two. From 1946 to 1950, however, the country’s collective understanding of Japanese American citizenship began to shift with recognition of the community’s military service record and an increased proportion of veterans elected …

Community And Idolatry: San Francisco Cajonos, Yalalag, And Betaza Through The Criminal Court Of Villa Alta, 1700-1704, Jessica Mitchell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The trials of San Francisco Cajonos and Betaza and Yalálag heard in Villa Alta’s criminal court depict many important facets of life in Colonial Oaxaca, and they especially paint the picture of community, how it was defined and how it operated in reality. Looking specifically at these two rich examples in Villa Alta’s criminal court, at the time, idolatry – native religion, rituals, and devotions defined by Catholics as idolatrous -- helped shape the lines of community and defined who belonged in which space. It also highlights how betrayal and revenge were construed by a community and the response for …

Netflix, Quarantine, And Chill: An Analysis Of Black Female Representation On 2020 Netflix Original Streaming Movies, Brier Evans

XULAneXUS

This study examines the frequency and nature of Black female representation in Netflix Original films and series released during the COVID-19 pandemic year of 2020. As cinema closures drove audiences to streaming platforms, Netflix emerged as the dominant media outlet, raising important questions about how the platform depicted Black women during a year defined by both pandemic isolation and heightened calls for racial justice following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Using content analysis, the researcher coded 112 Netflix Original films and 102 Netflix Original series for the racial identity of main cast members, the frequency of Black …

Effects Of Allotment On South Dakota Reservations, Ty Paulsen

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

The history of allotment is long and complex. Throughout many decades of work, the United States government attempted to assimilate Native Americans throughout the country by using the allotment policy. By attempting to do so, the government strained relationships even further. This paper will discuss many of the ways the United States government failed to implement an effective policy to assimilate Native Americans. The allotment policy failed to assimilate Native Americans on South Dakota reservations.

Ancestral Pursuits: A Multicultural Celebration Of Identity & Race, Charlotte Cates Castro

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Using critical historical rhetorical methods along with critical race and decolonial theory, this project situates ancestral pursuits as a communication-centered discursive formation by investigating the rhetorical strategies modern biotech and genealogy companies utilize to influence contemporary discourse around identity and belonging and narrate ethnicity and genealogy as acts of consumption. Through direct-to-consumer DNA testing and complimentary services, modern day biotech and genealogy companies like Ancestry and 23andMe market personalized insights into ancestry, genealogy, inherited traits, and health data that promise to connect users to their past, as well as to situate them in present-day society, through a deeper understanding of …

The Effects Of Sociodemographic Characteristics, Caregiving Practice Patterns, Coping Mechanisms, And Social Support On The Health Of Asian American Ethnic Groups And Asian American Caregivers, Suryadewi Edi Nugraheni

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Background: Asian American family caregivers came from various ethnic groups with different sociodemographic characteristics and culturally specific values. However, cultural practices were often overlooked because researchers often combined all Asian Americans under one umbrella. Objective: The purpose of the study was two-fold. First, the study investigated the study sample of Asian Americans participating in the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) 2009 comprised of multiple Asian American ethnic groups. By utilizing the study sample, the research aimed to investigate 1) the associations between caregiving and self-rated health (SRH) and hypertension and 2) the associations between heterogeneity of Asian American ethnic groups …