Blog

“Family or Boss?” Cultural Exchange Narratives and New Law Implementation in the US Au Pair Program

17 November 2023

Even with new labor protections in place, Massachusetts au pairs still find themselves vulnerable due to the lack of agency supervision and the program’s emphasis on family membership and “cultural exchange.”

Invisible Frontliners: Filipina/o Caregivers in the United States and Collective Care

3 November 2023

Before, during the COVID-19 era, and continued to today, Filipino care workers are at the frontlines of assisted living facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs) and as personal attendants to chronically ill and differently abled people in the San Francisco/Bay Area. Because the caregiving industry has stagnated as an under resourced sector of American healthcare, the care workers within it suffer from a host of labor violations. Yet, caregivers have innovated their ability to care for one another.

I Carry the City on My Back

9 October 2023

The Wu-Tang Clan story reflects the ethos of black abundance, which is based on the principle of sharing resources. However, it also sheds light on the overwhelmingly male world of street drug dealing. Chapter 3, titled “I Carry the City on My Back,” from the forthcoming book manuscript “That’s My Heart: Queering Intimacy in Hip-Hop Culture,” delves into the ambivalences of hip-hop culture and masculinity

Caring Masculinities and Football Brotherhood

9 October 2023

In her forthcoming book, Tracie Canada describes the various relationships Black college football players cultivate during and beyond their years in college. This is done as a response to the exploitative, violent, and anti-Black structures they tackle, especially the college football system. In the chapter on which this post is based, Canada addresses Black players as brothers to one another, as they express a form of care that values the person over the player, reflects shared practices, and attends to the importance of racialized experiences