Activism

Roberto Martínez, Sr.

Father-and-son mariachi musicians Roberto and Lorenzo Martinez. Arlington, Virginia, 2003. photograph by Alan Govenar Nuevo Mexicano, Music, Activism Roberto Martínez, Sr. (1929-2013) Roberto Martínez influenced generations of musicians through his songwriting, performances, and recordings, offering constant support and encouragement to younger musicians. Surrounded by traditional northern Nuevo Mexicano music, Martínez went on to form the […]

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James Hirabayashi, Lane Ryo Hirabayashi

Left: Lane Ryo Hirabayashi. Photo from the Los Angeles Times, by Jake Fabricius Photography. Right: James Hirabayashi. Photo from Nichi Bei Weekly Report Japanese American, Ethnic Studies, Activism, Museum Work James Hirabayashi, Lane Ryo Hirabayashi (1926-2012), (1952-2020) Father and son, James Hirabayashi and Lane Hirabayashi were anthropologists who often collaborated, but also pursued distinct areas

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Frank Bonilla

Photo from the Voces Oral History Center, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin. Puerto Rican, Sociology, Activism Frank Bonilla (1925-2010) Dr. Frank Bonilla was an academic researcher and early pioneer of Puerto Rican Studies, serving as the first director of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at the City University of

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Yuri Kochiyama

Yuri Kochiyama speaks at an anti-war demonstration in New York City’s Central Park around 1968. Courtesy of the Kochiyama family/UCLA Asian American Studies Center. Human Rights Activist, Community Convener, Social Justice Mentor  Yuri Kochiyama (1921-2014) Yuri Kochiyama, née Mary Yuriko Nakahara, was an iconic activist. Revered as an ancestor by many communities, her endeavors are

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Violet Kazue de Cristoforo

Photo from 2007 NEA National Heritage Fellow announcement, photograph by Michael G. Stewart Japanese American, Literature, Activism, Ethnography Violet Kazue de Cristoforo (1917-2007) Violet Kazue de Cristoforo was a 2007 National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow, recognized as a writer, translator, and editor of poetry, specifically the Japanese forms of haiku and tanka.

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Grace Lee Boggs

Photo from the Boggs Center Chinese American, Cultural Theory, Philosophy, Activism Grace Lee Boggs (1915-2015) Dr. Grace Lee Boggs was a community builder, activist, and philosopher, whose actions and writings have been widely influential for organizers, academics, and artists invested in work and forging practices that transform society.  Grace Chin Lee was given the name

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Ophelia Settle Egypt

Photo from from the 1925 Howard University yearbook. The Bison (Howard University 1925): page 58. African American, Ethnography, Activism Ophelia Settle Egypt (1903-1984) Born in a small town near Clarksville, Texas, in 1903, Ophelia Settle graduated from Howard University with a BA in 1925. After teaching for a year at the Orange County Training School

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Lydia Cabrera

Photo courtesy of the Cuban Heritage Collection, University of Miami Libraries, Coral Gables, Florida. Lydia Cabrera Papers, CHC0339. Cuban Folklorist, Ethnologist, Writer, and Literary Activist Lydia Cabrera (1899–1991) Lydia Cabrera was one of the first writers to recognize and make public the richness of Afro-Cuban culture. She made valuable contributions in the areas of anthropology

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Aurora Lucero-White Lea

Photo from the National Women’s History Museum Nuevo Mexicana, Folklore, Federal Writers’ Project, Activism Aurora Lucero-White Lea (1894-1963) Aurora Lucero-White Lea was born to parents Julia Romero and Antonio Lucero in Las Vegas, New Mexico. Throughout her life, Lucero-White was committed to the Hispanic community of New Mexico, and she strived to maintain and continue

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Charles S. Johnson

Portrait of Dr. Charles Johnson, sociologist at Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee [between 1935 and 1945]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. Call Number: LC-USW3- 019352-C [P&P], Reproduction Number: LC-USW3-019352-C (b&w film neg.) African American, Sociology, Education, Ethnography, Activism Charles S. Johnson (1893-1956) Charles S. Johnson, born in Bristol, Virginia in 1893, was the son

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