Written by Krista L. Cortes Ph.D. candidate University of California Berkeley
My identity as an AfroPuertorriqueña mother profoundly influences my politics, projects and praxis as a Ph.D. candidate at UC Berkeley. As a scholar of blackness and learning, I am committed to bringing visibility and critical inquiry into the experiences of AfroLatinx youth and developing black-affirming educational spaces that allow for the cultivation of full and multiple AfroLatinidades. In the realm of higher education, this includes recognizing the ways mothering intersects with being an AfroLatina graduate student who also has to navigate different-isms in the predominately white spaces of the academy; this is no more blatant than in the areas of professional development and network building.
Conferences create issues around access for student-parents and faculty-parents who have to think about things like childcare, cost and other burdens incurred when traveling with a family. While many people do travel with their families, these experiences are often invisible as women of color are socialized to not discuss our children as it may be seen as a strike against us among our colleagues. Many of us make the sacrifices necessary to attend conferences, suffering in silence from the ways we are forced to bifurcate our identities in order to advance our careers.
In seeking out the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE) Graduate Fellows Program, I had imagined AAHHE, as a Latinx-serving organization, would understand the circumstances facing parenting scholars like myself, and readily offer accommodations in order for me to attend the conference. What I found was that AAHHE, like many other organizations, was not yet in tune to the varying needs faced by student parents, particularly mothers. Through the help of the GFP coordinators, with special thanks to Ibette Valle and members of the AAHHE Board, the organization took the opportunity to develop its understanding and approach to student parents.
In attending the conference, I felt nothing but love and support from the various people with whom I interacted. My cohort-mates welcomed my son and me into the communidad, allowing me the space to mother while taking part in the various activities designed for our professional and personal development as Latinx scholars. It was affirming to be at an academic conference that allowed me to be my full self and not have to apologize for being a mother. By participating with my son by my side, I connected with other mothers who shared with me similar difficulties navigating these spaces. For some, seeing a mother and child in sessions empowered them to do the same.
One of the most memorable moments of AAHHE 2019 was attending the Latina Mami Scholars on the Tenure Track workshop led by Dra. Claudia Garcia-Louis, Dra. Tracy Arámbula Ballysingh, Dra. Courtney Luedke and Dra. Susana Hernández. This workshop was revolutionary in its allowance for radical self-care to take place among mamis and allies building towards individual, organizational and structural change. Through this and other moments throughout the conference, I found hope and empowerment in the transformations I saw taking place around me that allowed for Latina mami scholars to be just that. •
