Alexandria Herrera

Alexandria Herrera is an Assistant Professor of Latin American History and International and Area Studies at the University of South Carolina’s College of Arts and Sciences, with affiliation to the Walker Institute. Her work bridges historical analysis and contemporary social justice issues, focusing on the intersections of public health, reproductive rights, and gender/sexuality studies in the Americas.

• Education:
  • B.A. in History and Spanish Literature, University of Arizona (2018)
  • M.A. in History and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Pennsylvania State University (2021)
  • Ph.D. in History and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Pennsylvania State University (2024)

Herrera’s research investigates the legacy of medical surveillance and experimentation, particularly on Indigenous and mixed-race communities in Guatemala, and draws connections to modern reproductive justice issues in U.S. detention centers. Her forthcoming book manuscript examines the construction of Indigenous sex workers as "medical criminals" through venereal disease surveillance in 19th-20th-century Guatemala City, linking it to the infamous Guatemala Syphilis Experiments (1946-1948).

In her 2024 chapter The Uterus Collectors, Herrera critiques the 2020 reports of forced sterilizations at ICE’s Irwin County Detention Center, arguing that hemispheric patterns of medical abuse against women of color demand a transnational historical framework.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad fellowship
  • College of Liberal Arts Dissertation Support Competition Award
  • Center for Information and Humanities Pre-Dissertation fellowship
  • Judith Hardes Graduate Student Research Award in Reproductive Justice

Herrera also emphasizes teaching Global Studies, Latinx History, and Latin American History, fostering critical engagement with colonial legacies and contemporary social justice. Her work is funded by multiple Penn State fellowships and centers on dismantling systemic inequities in medical and state practices.