Marquisele Mercedes

Marquisele Mercedes is a President's Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), conducting critical research at the intersection of public health, race, and body politics. Her work is supported by the prestigious UC President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program under the mentorship of Professor Janet Shim.

Her academic background includes:

• B.A. in English Literature, Language, and Criticism from Hunter College, The City University of New York
• Ph.D. in Behavioral and Social Health Sciences from Brown University, supervised by Professor Madina Agénor

Dr. Mercedes' research program critically examines Antiblackness, antifatness, and ableism in public health through the lens of weight stigma. Her groundbreaking dissertation, "Black Fat Interventions For and Against the Field of Weight Stigma Research," challenges conventional public health paradigms by centering Black fat lived experiences. Her scholarship actively bridges critical race theory, fat studies, and disability justice to expose how medicalized weight stigma functions as a tool of systemic oppression against Black communities.

Her major recognition includes:

• President's Postdoctoral Fellowship (University of California system)

As a postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Mercedes focuses exclusively on research advancement without formal student advising responsibilities. Her current fellowship provides dedicated research time and resources to develop community-centered interventions that address structural health inequities. Her work represents a vital shift toward decolonizing public health research through intersectional frameworks that prioritize racial and body liberation.