(Re)imagining Indigenous Psychology with Dr. Azucena Verdin!

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Azucena Verdín to discuss her work in Educational Psychology and the ways it intersects with Indigenous Chicano ways of knowing. We talk about her experience as a Chicana working in a field dominated by white academics and share a few thoughts on the recent tragedy in Uvalde, Texas.

About our guest:

She received a Master’s in the Arts in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2013 and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of North Texas in 2019. Her dissertation on Mexican-origin borderland mothers' experiences of epistemic injustice received the 2020 John L. and Harriette P. McAdoo Dissertation Award for excellence in research on ethnic-racial minority families from the National Council on Family Relations. She is an assistant professor in the department of Human Development, Family Studies, and Counseling at Texas Woman's University. Her research centers on identity processes among Mexican-origin families, including how racism, colorism, and anti-Indigeneity is internalized within Chicano families.

You can reach Dr. Verdín through her email: [email protected]

Cited in this podcast:

Armando Navarro, “The Post Mortem Politics of the Chicano Movement: 1975-1996,” Perspectives in Mexican American Studies, “Mexican Americans in the 1990s: Politics, Policies, and Perceptions” 6 (1997): 52–79.

Azucena Verdín, “Mothering While Brown: Latina Borderland Mothers’ Experiences of Epistemic Injustice” (Denton, University of North Texas, 2019).

Azucena Verdín, “E(Race)Ing Mexican Americans: Why Denying Racial Indigeneity Constitutes White Supremacy in Family Science,” National Council on Family Relations, 2021, https://www.ncfr.org/ncfr-report/fall-2021/eraceing-mexican-americans-why-denying-racial-indigeneity-constitutes-white-supremacy-family. 

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Your Hosts:

Kurly Tlapoyawa is an archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and filmmaker. His research covers Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the historical connections between the two regions. He is the author of numerous books and has presented lectures at the University of New Mexico, Harvard University, Yale University, San Diego State University, and numerous others. He most recently released his documentary short film "Guardians of the Purple Kingdom," and is a cultural consultant for Nickelodeon Animation Studios.
@kurlytlapoyawa

Ruben Arellano Tlakatekatl is a scholar, activist, and professor of history. His research explores Chicana/Chicano indigeneity, Mexican indigenist nationalism, and Coahuiltecan identity resurgence. Other areas of research include Aztlan (US Southwest), Anawak (Mesoamerica), and Native North America. He has presented and published widely on these topics and has taught courses at various institutions. He currently teaches history at Dallas College – Mountain View Campus.

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