Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira published the essay, “‘Didn’t She Used to Sell That WAP?’: Cardi B, Clashing Femininities, and Citizenship,” in Women’s Studies in Communication. The article argues that conservative reactions to Cardi B’s performances of racialized and classed femininity on Twitter, especially from right-wing cisgender women, aimed to put the rapper “in her place,” which is outside of politics and in opposition to (white) American values. Even though Cardi B’s working-class Black femininity places her outside of discourses of normative U.S. citizenship and meritocracy, the rapper “makes herself at home” by engaging in civic practices regardless of the classist misogynoir directed at her. The article is available here.

Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira received the Innovator Award for Most Outstanding Book from the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Caucus at the Central States Communication Association Annual Conference in St. Louis, MO, for her monograph, Bitches Unleashed: Performance and Embodied Politics in Favela Funk. At the conference, Moreira also presented the paper “The Right Girl from Rio: Anita’s Crossover and Latinidad’s Whiteness” and participated in the panel discussion “Effective Inclusive Pedagogical Practices by and for Silenced Voices.”

• Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira engaged in a number of activities at the 2022 National Communication Association (NCA) Annual Convention in New Orleans. Moreira received the International and Intercultural Communication Division’s Best Book Award for Bitches Unleashed: Performance and Embodied Politics in Favela Funk. Additionally, she presented the following papers:

1. “Mestiçagem and Racial spatiality in Anitta’s ‘Girl from Rio,’” co-planned paper session with Texas AM’s Dr. Bryce Henderson and sponsored by the Critical and Cultural Studies Division.
2. “Dragging White Femininity: Pabllo Vittar’s Performances of Gender and Race on Instagram,” paper session sponsored by the GLBTQ Communication Studies Division.
3. “Communication Needs Transfeminismo: How a Brazilian Political and Epistemological Movement Can Help Decolonize Our Discipline,” presented in Portuguese for a multilingual panel about structural violence sponsored by NCA’s First Vice President.

Finally, Moreira participated as a panelist in the following:

1. “Spotlight on Scholarship: New Books in Latina/o/x Communication Studies,” sponsored by NCA’s First Vice President.
2. “Publishing Race Scholarship in Communication Studies: Challenges Faced by Scholars of Color and/or International Scholars in the Field,” sponsored by NCA’s First Vice President.
3. “Latinx Faculty: Finding our PLACE in Predominantly White Institutions,” sponsored by the La Raza Caucus.
4. “The Future of the La Raza Caucus: An Open Forum,” a session co-chaired with Dr. Michelle Holling and sponsored by the La Raza Caucus.
5. “Shared Governance as a Place for Advocacy: Examining How the Neoliberal University is Dismantling Community Deliberation,” sponsored by the Association for Communication Administration.

Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira was interviewed and quoted as an expert source for an Los Angeles Timesprofile featuring Brazilian pop star Anitta, who is set to perform at LA Pride 2022. 

The Department of Communication Studies took the National Communication Association (NCA) 107th Annual Convention by storm the weekend before Thanksgiving in Seattle. Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Rico Self, and Professor of Communication Studies Valerie Renegar all presented research and participated in roundtable discussions on a variety of topics, including queer motherhood (Self), surveillance during transformative moments (Bahrainwala), comedy and social change (Renegar), and Cardi B (Moreira). In total, they participated in 12 different research presentations or discussions. 

The faculty members also formed the cheering section when Moreira won the 2021 Bonnie Ritter Outstanding Feminist Book Award from NCA’s Feminist and Gender Studies Division and Self won the 2021 Gerald R. Miller Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award. Because NCA is the largest professional organization for communication scholars, these presentations and awards designate an especially high level of achievement.