Graduate Certificate Student in Women's Studies
he/they/she
About
Jess is a doctoral candidate in political theory, working within the Political Science Department. They draw on theories of gender and race to study the work of ideas within political movements. Their dissertation centers the activism and political thought of Pauli Murray, tracing how Murray and other Black transgender activists steered – through conceptual innovation in action – antiracist, feminist, and decolonial political organizing in the 20 th century. Through archival research and interpretive analysis, Jess’s project presents a counter history of trans activism that challenges established theories of resistance, protest, and self-mastery. Jess is a Rackham Merit Fellow.
