Publication Type: Abstract
Abstract: The aim of this project was to determine the amount of damage caused to farms around Cyamundongo Forest, in southwestern Rwanda, by crop-raiding and livestock predating animals, to determine factors increasing farmer vulnerability, and to assess attitudes about conservation and ecotourism efforts in the park. Data was collected through interviews with members of farming households in three villages around this small forest patch, which is home to many endangered birds and mammals, including chimpanzees. I determined that farmers were experiencing significant losses from crop-raiding and moderate losses from livestock predation, and have negative attitudes towards problem animals, in particular, baboons and jackals. However, contrary to my predictions, even local people who experience frequent raids did not express negative opinions of ecotourism or the park as a whole. This may be due to the new status of the park—it has only been a protected area since 2003, and local people are still adjusting to the changes. Despite overall positive attitudes towards the park, an overwhelming number of respondents expressed great concern about their ability to maintain their way of life, and increasing frustration over what they perceived to be a lack of involvement by local government and park officials. It is imperative that solutions be found to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in this area before public opinion turns and efforts to preserve biodiversity become threatened.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: In responding to the events at Brownsville, Theodore Roosevelt engaged in arguments from definition, dissociation, and association. He also argued that the soldiers’ silence had a specific meaning, and in so doing, Roosevelt reflected the prevailing ideology surrounding American racial relations. Through Brownsville, we see the ideological positioning of both African Americans as subordinate members of the national polity and the American president as an authoritative source for definitions of American national identity.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The Ariston bathhouse marks the site of the first raid on a predominantly gay bathhouse clientele, and the story of that raid and the ensuing criminal trials are important for understanding the development of modern sexuality in the early 20th century. While the raid itself demonstrates the extent of state surveillance of persons deemed sexually deviant, the trials of the five defendants more broadly illuminate the cultural terrain of turn-of-the-century sexuality. This paper examines the defense strategies of five men arrested in the Ariston raid. Through an analysis of trial transcripts, I will show how the discursive space of the courtroom constructed normative sexuality during a time period when modern notions of hetero and homosexuality took root. Specifically, this paper evaluates sodomy defenses centering on the act itself and the sexual subjectivities of the defendants. Act-centered strategies concern the physical practice of sodomy. Following this tact, some attorneys emphasized the bodily impossibility of the sexual scenarios described by the prosecution and the presumed absurdity that anyone would do it in public. The second strategy hinged on a connection between sodomy and sexual identity. Identity-centered defenses highlighted the manly character of the defendant encoded in his class status and desire for women. I explore the implications of my study for gay historiography and for understanding the legal construction and policing of sexuality.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The immigration raids by the border patrol in the Inland Valley region of California followed a historical pattern by the U. S. government of rounding up immigrants when the country experiences an economic downturn and when there is a need for a scapegoat. The raids created an ongoing fear and hysteria in local communities. The raids also affected residents and citizens who, for the simple reason of having brown skin, were stopped by the Border Patrol and questioned about their citizenship status. Although U. S. Border Patrol officials claimed that the raids were not part of a national strategy, local officials placed the responibility for stopping the raids on "higher-ups" in Washington. Most significant was the response of right-wing Republicans, Latino elected officials, and Inland Valley communities. On the one hand, conservative politicians and organizations supported a movement to expand the raids nationally. On the other, a Latino coalition of community organizations and elected officials emerged as a model of putting a stop to the raids through mass demonstrations, press conferences, letter-writing campaigns, citizenship/ voter registration drives, and organized pressure on a federal level.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The general invisibility of lesbian bodies and sexualities within the legal domain has been well-noted by feminist and queer legal scholars. Such invisibility is often attributed to dominant cultural norms which marginalize lesbian experiences and to policing practises which have historically criminalized lesbians less vigorously than gay men. As such lesbian sexuality is often assumed to “fall below the radar” of state surveillance and public perception. Yet, the capacity to “not see” or “not know about” lesbian sexuality is not simply a matter of perception, but also involves wilful acts of ignorance. Drawing from R v Hornick (2002) a Canadian case involving the police raid of a women’s bathhouse in Toronto, this paper explores how queer bodies and sexualities are actively rendered invisible via legal knowledge practises, norms and rationalities. I argue that “limited knowledge” and “limited thinking” not only regulate the borders of visibility, but play an active part in shaping identities, governing conduct and producing subjectivity.