Jess Whatcott

Dr. Jess Whatcott (they/them) is an Associate Professor in Women’s Studies at San Diego State University (SDSU), affiliated with LGBTQ+ Studies and Digital Humanities. They hold a Ph.D. in Politics from the University of California Santa Cruz, with emphases in Feminist Studies and Critical Race & Ethnic Studies. A first-generation graduate of the California State University System, they previously lectured in the CSU system before joining SDSU.

Dr. Whatcott’s research focuses on state violence, the carceral/prison industrial complex, and eugenics, intersecting with critical disability studies, queer studies, political economy, and California history. Their work is deeply tied to movements for feminist abolition, transformative justice, migrant justice, and disability justice. Recent publications include the monograph Menace to the Future: A Disability and Queer History of Carceral Eugenics (Duke UP, 2024) and articles in Journal of Literary & Cultural Disability Studies, Feminist Formations, and Lateral.

Teaching includes courses such as Introduction to Trans Studies, Body Politics, and Health/Healing in Feminist Disability Studies. Their scholarship and activism aim to dismantle systems of oppression through interdisciplinary analysis and community-driven justice frameworks.