The time is finally here!

After 6 years of my PhD training, countless late nights researching, writing, revising, and more, I’m officially defending my dissertation on Wednesday, September 17th, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m EST.

I’ve leaned on community, mentors, and loved ones along the way, and I carry all of that support into this final step. If you’d like to attend the defense virtually, I’d love to have you there. Below you’ll find the details to join, along with the title and abstract of my dissertation.

Title: Examining Intersectional Stigma Among Black Nonbinary Adults

Abstract
In recent years, the visibility of nonbinary genders has increased. Nonbinary individuals, who may also identify as genderqueer, gender fluid, or agender, complicate essentialist notions of a male/female binary, and as a result, often face heightened stigma compared to their cisgender and binary trans counterparts. This issue is particularly acute for Black nonbinary individuals, who experience the compounded effects of cisnormativity, transnormativity, white supremacy, alongside other intersecting forms of discrimination. However, to date, there has been no study focused specifically on the stigma experiences of Black nonbinary identities.

This dissertation addresses that gap through a mixed-methods research design that triangulates semi-structured interviews, a focus group, online forum analysis, news media review, and critical policy analysis. Grounded in the concept of stigma power, and expanded through Patricia Hill Collins’ domains of power framework, the study examines how stigma operates across structural, cultural, disciplinary, and interpersonal contexts.

Findings reveal that Black nonbinary people routinely navigate institutional abandonment, cultural erasure, policing, and diminished social support. Their stories provide critical insight into how stigma becomes embedded in policy, language, and everyday interactions, and they help illuminate what it will take to dismantle these systems. This study contributes to growing research on intersectional stigma among Black queer and transgender people and urges a shift in health, policy, and community frameworks toward affirming care, structural accountability, and collective liberation.

Event Details

Meeting link:

https://gsumeetings.webex.com/gsumeetings/j.php?MTID=mb0348d38a4b10b1630be119b92fe688d

Meeting number:

2535 177 0886

Meeting password:

ASnCMvvm637

Join from a video system or application

Dial 25351770886@gsumeetings.webex.com

You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number.

Join by phone

+1-415-655-0002 Toll

Access code: 25351770886

Global call-in numbers

https://gsumeetings.webex.com/gsumeetings/globalcallin.php?MTID=m96693784736315638cc9c5442cb1703a