My name is Jennifer A. Cárcamo (she/her/hers – they/them/theirs), and I am a first-generation, queer, femme Salvadoran scholar, filmmaker, and organizer. My primary research interests focus on the social movement history of Central America, including its diaspora. I hope to someday teach Central American social history, as well as continue producing documentaries that uplift the stories of Central American peoples across race, class, and gender.

Currently, I am a PhD Candidate in UCLA’s History Department (Field: Latin America*), as well as a Visiting Scholar at Rutgers University in the Center of Latin American Studies (CLAS) where I am working under the mentorship of Dr. Aldo Lauria-Santiago on my dissertation. My doctoral research focuses on the origins and evolution of communist parties and socialist movements in Central America from 1920-1960. I am particularly interested in the ways these parties and movements frontally opposed fascism through transnational organizing efforts that centered international solidarity as well as actively involved women and afro indigenous communities. In the process of working on my dissertation over the last three years, I have successfully conducted archival research in Cuba, Mexico, Russia, El Salvador, and Guatemala with the generous support of various academic institutions.

My first documentary Children of the Diaspora: For Peace and Democracy (2013) can be viewed for free at https://childrenofthediaspora.com/. My second documentary Eternos Indocumentados: Central American Refugees in the United States (2018) can also be viewed for free online at https://www.eternosindocumentados.com/. To date, my films have been publicly screened in the United States, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Cuba.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, I am the proud daughter of Salvadoran migrant/refugee parents. Currently, I live in Newark, New Jersey.

Research Interests: Social History of Central America; Central American Revolutions; Contemporary Latin America across race, class, and gender; Radical traditions in 20th century Latin America; Communist and socialist movements; Central Americans in the U.S.; Refugees and forced migration; U.S empire, imperialism; Critical Histories of Capitalism, Neoliberalism, and Fascism;  Latin American Film and Cinema

Academic Fields & Subfields: Latin American Studies, Latin American History, Latina/o/x Studies, Central American Studies, Critical Refugee Studies, Oral History