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Meghan Kruger
Issue date: 2/6/09 Section: News
Carlos Decena, one of the Institute for Puerto Rican and Latino Studies' visiting scholars, discussed his research and his new book in a lecture entitled "Making Social Boundaries in Queer Dominican Worlds," sponsored by the Rainbow Center Wednesday afternoon.
Decena, who teaches in the departments of women's and gender studies and Latino and Hispanic Caribbean studies at Rutgers University, is the author of "Tacit Subjects: Dominican Transnational Identities and Male Homosexuality in New York City."
Decena discussed how people, specifically Dominican immigrant gay men, generate identity within and among groups, and how time and place are crucial to identity formation. He noted that "gender regulations continue within gay communities," and discussed how even those who belong to a community or group still struggle with their own personal identity.
Other areas of discussion included race, gender and language, as well as how immigration and cultural differences affected the experiences of the men in his study.
In addition to lecturing, Decena also read excerpts from a chapter of his new book, which he is still working on.
Having earned his undergraduate degree in English literature, Decena's interest in his current field generated after he participated in a research project that studied people's sexual history while he attended graduate school in New York City.
The lecture was attended by students, staff and faculty and also included a question and answer period for the audience.
"What I really want people to get from my work is that just because people belong to a community or identify with a group, doesn't mean that they are happy and don't see differences between themselves and other members of their group," Decena said.
Chief among the audience was the INTD 3995 class entitled Queer Studies in an Interdisciplinary Approach, instructed by Fleurette King, who is also the director of the Rainbow Center. The course consists of weekly guest speakers who offer broad insight surrounding queer issues.
"I thought [Decena's] talk was very interesting. The information he gave was applicable to several other LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] groups," King said.
The class aims to bring students from many different disciplines together to discuss a variety of topics involving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer studies.
Charles Bordan, a 4th-semester biology major and member of the class, thought Decena's lecture was "very insightful and very profound. This is an area not commonly researched, so I enjoyed hearing what he had to say."
Decena, who teaches in the departments of women's and gender studies and Latino and Hispanic Caribbean studies at Rutgers University, is the author of "Tacit Subjects: Dominican Transnational Identities and Male Homosexuality in New York City."
Decena discussed how people, specifically Dominican immigrant gay men, generate identity within and among groups, and how time and place are crucial to identity formation. He noted that "gender regulations continue within gay communities," and discussed how even those who belong to a community or group still struggle with their own personal identity.
Other areas of discussion included race, gender and language, as well as how immigration and cultural differences affected the experiences of the men in his study.
In addition to lecturing, Decena also read excerpts from a chapter of his new book, which he is still working on.
Having earned his undergraduate degree in English literature, Decena's interest in his current field generated after he participated in a research project that studied people's sexual history while he attended graduate school in New York City.
The lecture was attended by students, staff and faculty and also included a question and answer period for the audience.
"What I really want people to get from my work is that just because people belong to a community or identify with a group, doesn't mean that they are happy and don't see differences between themselves and other members of their group," Decena said.
Chief among the audience was the INTD 3995 class entitled Queer Studies in an Interdisciplinary Approach, instructed by Fleurette King, who is also the director of the Rainbow Center. The course consists of weekly guest speakers who offer broad insight surrounding queer issues.
"I thought [Decena's] talk was very interesting. The information he gave was applicable to several other LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] groups," King said.
The class aims to bring students from many different disciplines together to discuss a variety of topics involving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer studies.
Charles Bordan, a 4th-semester biology major and member of the class, thought Decena's lecture was "very insightful and very profound. This is an area not commonly researched, so I enjoyed hearing what he had to say."
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