As a historian, I use the experiences of Dominican actors to help document the ways Dominicans add to our understanding of the multiplicities of the experiences of Afro-descendants in the Americas and use their narratives to expand what we know about the ways in which Black racial identities have been invoked, diminished, and erased by empire, migration, and schools.

Crafting Dominicanidad:

Education and Citizenship during the US

Occupation of the Dominican Republic (1916-1924)

(forthcoming with University of North Carolina Press)

Crafting Dominicanidad traces the various notions of citizenship in the Dominican Republic that were articulated and shaped during the 1916 US occupation. Using the documents of the Military Government, Department of Justice and Public Instruction, as well as letters written by concerned parents and community members, this book explores how Dominicans across the country used this moment to reflect, discuss, and practice Dominican citizenship.

Dominican Voices Project/Proyecto Voces Dominicanas

Dominican Voices Project/Proyecto Voces Dominicanas is a bilingual digital archive that consists of audio and videotaped interviews of Dominicans born and raised in the Dominican Republic between 1920 and 1960. The project preserves local histories and educates students, teachers, and the general public in the Dominican Republic and the US about the history of education and childhood during the early 20th-century Dominican Republic.

Other Publications