Michelle Christian

Michelle Christian is an Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, serving as the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Sociology. Her research bridges Critical Race Theory, Global Political Economy, and Gender Studies, focusing on racial inequality, labor conditions, and transnational intersectionality across multiple continents.

• Education: Ph.D. in Sociology from Duke University (2011).

Christian’s work develops the Global Critical Race and Racism Framework (GCRRF), analyzing how global white supremacy and racial neoliberalism reproduce through tourism networks, corporate policies, and labor systems. Her empirical studies span Kenya, Uganda, Costa Rica, the U.S., South Africa, Indonesia, China, and India, often involving collaborative international projects like the UK DFID-funded Capturing the Gains.

Recent research highlights include: racialized domestic work in Uganda, transgender labor challenges in Boston, and racial microaggressions at UT. She has published extensively in journals such as American Behavioral Scientist, Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, and International Sociology.