In Focus: Faculty Interview Series

Jody Benjamin Participant, Committee on African Studies Department: History Rank: Assistant Professor Educational background: Ph.D. in African and African American Studies with a concentration in African History, Harvard University, 2016 # of years at UCR: Four Top three texts I would take to a desert island: The best collection of photographs I could find; The Fortunes of Wangrin by Ahmadou Hampate Ba. The Source of Self-Regard by Toni Morrison. Favorite things: music: afrobeat, hip hop, bebop, jazz, reggae; places: libraries, museums, big cities (Dakar, Lagos, New York City), the woods, farmer’s markets, street festivals/parades, California beaches;  food: Jamaican Brown Stew chicken with [...]

Victoria Reyes Participant, Mellon Advancing Intercultural Studies, Contested Histories Seminar Department: Sociology Rank: Assistant Professor # of years at UCR: Entering 4th year at UCR but 3rd year on campus because during my first year I was on leave for a Postdoc at University of Michigan Top three texts I would take to a desert island: This is a difficult one…I’d say I would take my phone and internet connection Favorite thing: Philippine brand dried mangoes Website: www.victoriadreyes.com Q. Your research agenda summed up in one sentence: I study culture, borders, and empires. Q. Is there a [...]

Juliet McMullin Convener, Inequities in Health, Faculty Commons Project Juliet's Stats: Department: Anthropology Rank: Professor Years at UCR: 14 Favorite Thing: Chocolate. It is such a favorite thing that I host bi-annual chocolate parties. Book I'm reading right now: Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot. Personal Website: www.julietmcmullin.com Comic of Juliet's visit to the 2018 Asian American History graduate seminar at UCLA by Angel's Talitha Trazo. Q. Your research agenda summed up in one sentence: My research agenda is designed to examine the production of inequality and its manifestations in health and wellness. Q. Are there particular questions that stand-out for [...]

Amanda Lucia Second Project Fellow, Center for Ideas and Society Department: Religious Studies Rank: Associate Professor Years at UCR: 7 Favorite Thing: Building my secret garden. Top texts for a desert island: Pierre Bourdieu, Distinction; Max Weber, Economy and Society (Vols. I & II); Giles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus [Chosen not on the pretense of presenting myself as smart, but rather because these are texts that I can read and reread, again and again, and still always seem to find something new and interesting bit to “think with.” ] Yoga class, Lightning in a Bottle, 2015. Q. Your research [...]

Matthew Mahutga Co-Lead, 2018-19 Political Economy Seminars and the Globalization, Populism and the International Order Symposium Department: Sociology Rank: Associate Professor Years at UCR: 10+ Favorite thing: My favorite past-time is just about anything on the Central California coast. Fishing, hiking, food and wine are right at the top! Text I would take to a desert island: How to Survive a Desert Island by Tim O'Shei (Capstone Press, 2019). Hiking with friend Mark Martinez at Montaña de Oro State Park. Q. Your research agenda summed up in one sentence: My research examines the socio-economic consequences [...]

Anthony Jerry Convener, Blackness Unbound, Faculty Commons Project Anthony's Stats Department: Anthropology Rank: Assistant Professor Years at UCR: 3 Project website: culturalmediaarchive.org         Q.  Summarize your research in one sentence:  My work seeks to highlight the ways that blackness has historically been conceived of as the means of production and the ways that this conception continues to inform the possibilities of experiences and expressions of contemporary blackness in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest. Q. How does your work add to current conversations in the field? The essential contribution my research is making is to take a critical look at [...]