Current or Ongoing Projects
My current research examines how governmental and corporate actors repurpose genetic data to reinforce biological determinisms, thereby reshaping public policy and restricting (Afro)Indigenous, disabled, neurodiverse, and queer self‑determination. I also investigate how governments, private industry, and extremist movements exploit coordinated media ecosystems (e.g. live-streaming or social media platforms, and legacy media outlets) to recruit, radicalize, and mobilize followers.
I focus on analyzing public policy and omnichannel media strategies that transform sensationalized reporting or advertising into techno-nationalist propaganda that exacerbates sociopolitical tensions and bolsters recruitment for extremist organizations, increasing the likelihood of ideologically-motivated acts of violence.
The second project relates to teaching Composition as abolitionism which builds on my graduate research into the Composition classroom as a space for resistance. I incorporate theories rooted in (Afro)Indigenous rhetorical traditions and built on intersectional abolitionist pedagogies to develop course curriculum that prioritizes student agency and community connection, promotes critical media consumption, and celebrates neuro-, physical, and cultural diversity.
Due to a health-related hiatus, my most recent criticism and media analysis was shared by way of social media and personal blog. The site also includes lesson plans and resources for fellow educators. All of my work, unless university mandated, is released under Creative Commons or Open Access licenses.
Fields of Research
- Anti-Colonialism Studies
- (Intersectional)(Tribal) Critical Race Theory
- Global Indigenous Studies & Rhetorics
- Sociocultural & Racial Identity Development
- The History of Race
- White Nationalism & Recruitment Tactics
- Militias & Extremist Movements
- Visual & Constitutive Rhetoric
- Pop Culture Criticism
- Mixed Methods
Past Projects
You can view selected work in my Portfolio by Clicking Here.
Graduate
My graduate studies focused on the 2010s-era rise of evangelical Christian white nationalism in the U.S. and Trump’s reliance on extremist organizations like Liberty University, QAnon, and the militia movement to procure power; projects examined the constitutive potential of the MAGA movement and settler colonial (re)construction of memory within identity formation.
For my specialization in the Teaching of Writing, I explored emerging Decolonial Digital and Visual American Indian Rhetorics Pedagogy like survivance, socioacupuncture, and rhetorical sovereignty while introducing multimodal global (Afro)Indigenous texts to the Composition classroom.
After finishing the program, I spent most of the pandemic monitoring white nationalist organizing across San Diego and Orange counties prior to the January 6th insurrection; roughly 2 TB of this data was turned over to the DOJ/DHS.
Undergraduate
Earlier in my career, I focused on Creative Writing publishing. My work can be found in San Diego Writer’s Ink, The Far East, The Acorn Review, and Aztec Literary Review.
I developed an Online Tutoring Manual for the SDSU Writing Center and proctored an original workshop for student Writing Placement Assessment preparation I also contributed to an article on Blackfriars Theatre for the Map of Early Modern London. During this time, my conference presentation research focused on neoliberal multicultural “flattening” in higher education and ways in which (peer) writing tutors could disrupt assimilationist or oppressive practices within the Writing Center space.