I’m a Professor of English and Chicana/o Studies at UCLA where I study Chicanx literature from the 19th century to the present with an emphasis on 19th century Mexican California. I’ve written two books: Chicano Nations (NYU 2011) is about nationalism and Chicanx literature from the early-1800s to post-9/11; Racial Immanence (NYU 2019) explores uses of the body and affect in Chicanx cultural production. My articles have appeared in leading journals such as American Literary History, Arizona Quarterly, and Áztlan (as well as journals not beginning with the letter A).
I am a past chair of the Modern Language Association’s prize committee for the best book in Chicana/o and Latina/o Literary and Cultural Studies, and past Vice President of the Latina/o Studies Association. I’m also past chair of both the MLA’s Executive Committee on Chicana/o Literature as well as its Committee on the Literature of People of Color of the US and Canada, and a past Director of UCLA’s Chicano Studies Research Center in addition to being the past chair of UCLA’s Committee on Diversity and Equal Opportunity.
So many chairs in my past! These days I’m taking things easy, focusing on y students, my public facing work in the digital humanities, and some editorial projects, all of which you’ll find described here.
