Trans Studies; Trans of Color Critique; Chicana Feminism; Identity Formation; Narrative Analysis; Fiction; Autofiction; Nonfiction
Biography
Athena Vasquez is an interdisciplinary critical-creative Trans Studies Scholar and trans Chicana writer based in Los Angeles. Broadly speaking, Athena’s research aims to understand trans Chicana identity formation and Chicana transness. As a critical-creative scholar, she interweaves in her research her own experiences as a trans Chicana. Her most recent project looks at how the trans umbrella metaphor erases trans Chicanas from the mainstream LGBTQ+ discourse and the transgender category.
She is currently working on her autofictional novel, Heart Me, which is a coming-of-age story about a trans Chicana’s journey to self-acceptance.
Athena is a recipient of the Eugene V. Cota-Robles Fellowship and the CSU Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholarship. Some of her writing has been published in Entre Magazine, Los Angeles Blade, and others.
Education
Ph.D. in Gender Studies, University of California, Los Angeles, (currently)
MFA in Creative Writing, Fiction, California State University, Long Beach 2024
BA in English- Creative Writing, California State University, Long Beach 2021
