Foundation Award for Research

I. Focus of Research

My research interest focuses on critical theory that evolves around violence, feminism, poverty, massive waves of migration, un-doing of the community, parallel state, and different forms of oppression. It analyses the representation and “co-belonging” of the evolution of violence towards a more neoliberal and systematic form reflected or represented in different cultural texts, whether they might be literature, film, music or soap operas or series.   I have specifically centered my area in the Mexican and Central American narrative, and the production of death in these countries, mainly located in the northern and southern borders of Mexico after the early nineties.  My effort is to develop a dialectic approach or debate that promotes a discussion on the current role of the aesthetics in the times of late capitalism, or in a neoliberal state.  I attempt to offer a reflection on the position of the aesthetics as a form of resistance, as an accomplice or as both, taking into account the different theoretical readings of the texts, and the multiple forms of reception and appropriation of the audience. I select Mexican narratives in my research or other cultural artifacts that portray a disruption of the narrative of the state of peace and advancement.  I am particularly interested in the narratives that disconnect from status quo and make visible the other side of the institutional discourse by attempting to capture different forms of neoliberal and systematic violence toward vulnerable groups. I am also interested in cultural texts that simultaneously demonstrate the inability to re-tell these stories of those expelled from the community, and therefore exhibit the exhaustion of language and epistemological limits and invite us to rethink our production of knowledge.  I also analyze the current situation of the current state of exception that Mexico faces with the complex situation that has followed the rupture of the sovereignty and contributed for the lawless land the country has become for some. I am currently working on projects that argue the commodification of the bodies of migrants from Central America or Mexico, women workers, or anyone who embodies the figure that Agamben has already developed as homo sacer.

II. Major Projects

Martínez, Judith. “The Central American Migrant: Mexico, the never-ending border.” The Never-Ending Journey: Cultural Representations of Central American Migration in the 21^st Century. Manuscript accepted for book chapter to be in print in 2022.

Martínez, Judith “Transculturación de la frontera norte de México: la lengua como rearticulación comunitaria en Estrella de la calle Sexta”.  Transculturación y trans-identidades en la literatura contemporánea mexicana. Book Ed. H. Flores. 2022.

Martínez, Judith. “Equidad de género en el mundo profesional”. Género, derecho y tecnología. Book Ed. M. García. 2022.

Martínez, Judith. “El miedo y las impredecibles formas de coexistencia como forma vida en un México neoliberal: El papel de las narco series mexicanas.”  2022.

Martínez, Judith. “Fenómenos de la frontera norte de México: despolitización o procesos de resistencia.” Transgresiones en las letras iberoamericanas: visiones del lenguaje poético. Book Ed.L. López y L. Mora Ballesteros. Argus-a. Hacienda, California. 2021

Martínez, Judith.  “A Perspective on Mexican Forced Migration.” Book Ed. D.Barrón. A Perspective of Multicultural Education and Diversity. Kendall Hunt. Dubuque, IA.  2020.

Martínez, Judith.: “2666 y la fractura de un Estado neoliberal.” CyberLetras. Revista de crítica literaria y cultural. Lehman College. New York.  2020

Martínez, Judith. “Perra brava y el estado adulterado.” Libro: El malestar del posconflicto. Aportes de la crítica literaria y cultural. Instituto Caro y Cuervo. Antioquia, Colombia.  2018

Martínez, Judith. “De Mujer a mujer. Desaprendiendo lo aprendido.” Revista de Equidad y Género. TSENL, Monterrey, México. April 2018

III. Future Directions of Research

I will continue to work on topics that pertain neoliberal violence, especially those represented in cultural text. I will focus on how the narrativization or de-narrativization of violence co-belongs and co-exists within the literary corpus. I also plan to expand and develop my research on sustainable practices for mentoring faculty from underrepresented backgrounds in predominantly white institutions as well as students. I will strengthen my scope of international top research journals in order to make my research more visible and create a space of resistance in the academic world.

IV. Topics related to your research and of interest to the broad University Community, for which you are available for presentations and/or consultations.

• Forced migration, mainly from Central America and Mexico
• Feminicides in Juarez
• Narco Literature
• Neoliberal Violence in the Northern and Southern Border of Mexico
• Gender Studies in Mexico
• Latinx Contemporary Literature
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion