معرفی
Erica L. Williams is a Professor of Anthropology and Sociology Chair at Spelman College, where she has been a faculty member since 2009. She earned her PhD and MA in Cultural Anthropology from Stanford University (2010 and 2005 respectively), and her BA in Anthropology and Africana Studies from New York University (2002). As a leading scholar in Black feminist anthropology, Williams contributes significantly to academic discourse through her research, teaching, and editorial work.
- PhD in Cultural and Social Anthropology, Stanford University, 2010
- MA in Cultural and Social Anthropology, Stanford University, 2005
- BA in Anthropology and Africana Studies, New York University, 2002
Williams' research centers on race, gender, sexuality, tourism, Brazil, African Diaspora, Afro-Latin America, ethnographic methods, globalization, transnationalism, and Black feminist anthropology. Her work critically examines Black feminist activism in Bahia, Brazil, exploring the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality within tourism economies and social movements. Through ethnographic methods, she documents how Black women navigate exclusionary spaces while building community and resistance.
Her scholarly publications reveal consistent engagement with Black feminist epistemologies, challenging mainstream anthropology from the margins of HBCUs. Williams' work demonstrates how race, gender, and sexuality intersect in transnational contexts, particularly in Brazil and the African diaspora. Her articles frequently address citation practices, knowledge production, and the importance of centering Black women's experiences in academic discourse.
- Vulcan Teaching Excellence Award
Williams actively mentors students through courses like Introduction to Anthropology, Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Gender & Sexuality, Feminist Ethnography, and Race and Identity in Latin America. As Book and Film Review Editor for Transforming Anthropology (journal of the Association of Black Anthropologists) and Secretary of the National Women's Studies Association, she shapes scholarly conversations and supports emerging researchers. Her involvement with the Cite Black Women Collective and as Advisory Board Member for VidaAfroLatina demonstrates commitment to institutional change and resource mobilization for Afro-descendant women.
Williams leads research teams focusing on Black feminist activism in Salvador, Bahia, and collaborates with organizations addressing sexual violence against Afro-descendant women in Latin America. Her current projects include an ethnography of Black feminist activism in Salvador, Bahia, and an autoethnographic travel memoir that bridges personal experience with scholarly analysis.
