Research Description
Dr. Gavin-Bravo received her PhD in Ethnic Studies with a specialization in Critical Gender Studies from UC San Diego. Her research examines the U.S.-based movement in solidarity with Chile against the Pinochet regime (1973-1990). Using archives, interviews, and cultural analysis, she argues that opposition to the regime was rooted in support for the leftist presidency of Salvador Allende and the robust and creative workers' movement that supported him. Dr. Gavin-Bravo suggests that U.S.-based Latinx radical politics were shaped by the Allende era, particularly as activists debated “socialism Chilean style,” or socialism through the ballot box, and considered the nature of U.S. imperialism, in particular how it affects women. As a Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Associate, she will work on her book manuscript entitled The Latinx Radical Imaginary and Chile: Transnational Feminisms, Chilean Exile, and Culture. Dr. Gavin-Bravo’s recent Latino Studies article is based on her second project and explores how second-generation Chilean exiles use hip hop to maintain a connection to the Allende era. Her research has also earned support from the ACLS.