Rae Baker

Rae Baker is an Assistant Professor in the Education and Community Action Research doctoral program at the University of Cincinnati. Their work is grounded in community-based research and centers on building anti-oppressive relationships and communities through transformative justice, tenant activism, and critical urban studies.

Education:

• PhD in Critical Geography, York University, Toronto, Canada
• MA in Labor Studies, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
• Post-Graduate Certificate in Trauma-Informed Practice, School of Social Work, Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada

Rae's research focuses on racism and racial capitalism in settler colonial contexts, housing politics, community land and food systems, feminist and queer studies, and trauma-informed approaches to research. They emphasize organizing as a research method and are deeply engaged in movements against police brutality and surveillance.

Dr. Baker is currently leading a major research project funded by the American Council of Learned Societies on community safety and surveillance in Detroit, MI. They are also co-editing an Urban Studies Foundation-funded volume on tenant activism during the pandemic.

Scientific and Professional Affiliations:

• Fulbright Alum
• Member, Decolonizing Cities Collective
• Member, Urban Praxis Workshop
• Former instructor, Prison Mindfulness Institute

Rae has extensive community engagement experience, including co-founding Detroit Renter City (2019–2021), serving in a housing legal aid nonprofit during the pandemic, and contributing to the report We Want Safety, Not Surveillance. They are available to supervise graduate students and collaborate on research initiatives.