Biography

Rachel (she/her) is a writer, dancer, and PhD candidate in the Department of American Studies & Ethnicity. She studies the expansion of the carceral state in the late 20th century through family separation and motherhood. Prior to USC, Rachel worked as a journalist for Salon, writing about criminal justice, race, and culture, and as a professional dancer with the Harlem-based dance company Forces of Nature. She organizes with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners, a grassroots prison abolitionist organization, and volunteers with USC’s Prison Education Project.

Education

  • MA New York University, 5/2017
  • MA American Studies and Ethnicity (African American Studies), New York University, 5/2017
  • BFA George Mason University, 5/2013
  • Research Keywords

    Carceral studies, gender studies, race/ethnicity