Roksana Badruddoja

Primary Research Areas: Assemblage Theory, Intersectional Feminism, and Decolonial Feminism; South Asian American Studies; Critical Race Theory; Violence Against BIWOC; Nationalism, Citizenship, and Im-migration; Mother Studies and Reproductive Trauma; Womanist Ethnography, Decolonial Ethnography, and Autohistoria-teoría; and, BIPOC Traumas and Life Affirming Epistemology of Grief

My current book project is entitled Bones of the Womb. In this book I respond to the question: How do we BIPOC folx survive amid cavernous terror and soul-ripping trauma? In this heart-centered literary story, I embark on a mystical womanist narration—autohistoria-teoría—to provide the broken hearted a pathway to better conceptualize and practice irreparable grief. From the incomprehensible pain of walking through the loss of three of my children as a WOC in the American nation-state, I serve as a mirror to BIPOC folx who sit in loss of any kind, and I demonstrate how to piece back together the wandering fragments of our Soul from shattering grief. In this work, I respond to the paucity of BIPOC-centered (un)birth trauma research by raising the volume on BIPOC reproductive trauma. I urgently step away from the multilayered inadequacies and insufficiencies of “western” psychotherapeutic models of trauma healing that are violent to us BIPOC folx and serve to pathologize our grief, and I dedicate myself to excavating critical Indigenous epistemology. I accomplish this with a deliberate and intentional blend of the personal, spiritual, and the scholarly to uncover the ways in which our narratives as BIPOC folx are often erased within material experiences.

PUBLICATION RECORD

Accepted

Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Book

Badruddoja, R. (Accepted). “National (un)Belonging: Bengali American Women on Imagining and Contesting Culture and Identity”. Boston: Brill/Haymarket.

Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Journal Article

Badruddoja, R. (Accepted). “Bones of the Womb: Healing Algorithms of BIPOC Reproductive Trauma”. Hypatia: A Journal of Feminist Philosophy.

Badruddoja, R. (Accepted). “The Fantasy of ‘Home’: Locating Dislocation, Loss and Silence”. Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women’s and Gender Studies.

Badruddoja, R. (Accepted). “Eat, Pray, Love: The “White Imagination” of Sanctuary”. Understanding and Dismantling Privilege.

Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Volume Chapter

Badruddoja, R. (Accepted). “The Myth of the Universal Women: The (White) Feminist Fantasy & The Invisibility of Violence Against Women of Color.” In International Response to Domestic Violence (2^nd edition). Milton Park, Oxford: Routledge.

Published

Editor-Reviewed Volume Chapter

Badruddoja, R. (2020). “Chapter 6-Hyperemesis Gravidarum: What to Expect When You are Expecting…NOT!” In Research in the Sociology of Health Care, Volume 38-Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Other Social Characteristics as Factors in Health and Health Care Disparities. Jennie Jacobs Kronenfeld (ed.). Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing.

Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Journal Article

Badruddoja, R. (2019). “Time, History and Memory: The Mythical Bongobondhu and the Birthing of Bangladeshi National Memories and Counter Memories.” South Asian Review, 40:4, 290-304.

Badruddoja, R. (2019). “Yucky, Dirty, Goo and Mess: Rupturing Anti-Menstrual Discourse.” Journal of Mother Studies, Issue 4, Retrieve from https://jourms.wordpress.com/yucky-dirty-goo-and-mess-rupturing-anti-menstrual-discourse/.

Badruddoja, R. (2014). “Third World Woman, Family, and Marriage: South Asian Diasporic Fiction as a Site for Consolidation of the American Nation-State.” South Asian Review, 35:2, 81-104.

Badruddoja, R. (2008). “Queer Spaces, Places, and Gender: The Tropologies of Rupa and Ronica.” Feminist Formations, 20:2,156-88. [Outstanding Faculty Publication of the Year, Spring 2009, Fresno State]

Badruddoja, R. (2008). “The Yonic Myths of Motherhood: An Autoethnography.” Journal of the Motherhood Initiative of Research and Community Involvement (JMIRCI), Special Edition: Caregiving and Carework: Theory and Practice, 10.1, 57-65.

Badruddoja, R. (2006). “Resisting the White Pole: A Feminist Ethnographic Study, Second-Generation South Asian-American Women, U.S. Racialization Projects, and the Arranged Marriage.” International Journal of Sociology of the Family, 32:1, 19-60.

Badruddoja, R. (2006). “White Spaces and Brown Traveling Bodies: A Project of Reworking Otherness.” International Review of Modern Sociology, 32:1, 1-34.

Badruddoja, R. (2005). “Color, Beauty, and Marriage: The Ivory Skin Model.” South Asian Graduate Research Journal (SAGAR), 15, 43-79.

Editor-Reviewed Creative Magazine Article

Badruddoja, R. (2019). “My Nakshi Kantha Shawl: Metacognitive Writing Strategies”. In The Operating System. Adrian Silbernagel (ed.).

Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Anthology

Badruddoja, R (1^st ed.) and Motapanyane, Maki (2^nd ed.). (2016). “New Maternalisms”: Tales of Motherwork (Dislodging the Unthinkable). Toronto, Canada: Demeter Press.

Invited & Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Volume Chapter

Badruddoja, R. (2016). “Chapter 7- ‘Home’ as a Mobile Cultural Diaspora: South Asian American Women and the Conceptualisation of Holidays in America" (Tourism Essentials Series). In Asian Genders and Tourism (Volume 75). Catheryn Khoo-Lattimore and Paolo Mura (eds.). Bristol, U.K.: Channel View Publications.

Invited & Editor-Reviewed Anthology Chapter

Badruddoja, R. (2016). “The Fantasy of Normative Motherhood.” In Good Girls Marry Doctors: South Asian American Daughters on Obedience and Rebellion. Piyali Bhattacharya (ed.). San Francisco: CA: Aunt Lute.

Editor-Reviewed Literary E-Magazine Article

Badruddoja, R. (2015). “The Invisibility and Marginality of Motherwork.” In Mothers Are Making Art (MAMA). Martha Joy Rose (ed.). New York, NY: Museum of Motherhood.

Badruddoja, R. (2007). The Yonic Myths of Motherhood: Contesting Maternal Ideology. DesiLit Magazine, 3.

Invited & Editor-Reviewed Literary Book Review

Badruddoja, R. (2014). The World in My Hands by K. Aniz Ahmed. India: Random House, 2013. 376 pp. (paperback). Northeast Review, Issue 8.

Invited & Editor-Reviewed Book Prologue

Badruddoja, R. (2014). “Invisible Identities: Bringing the Voices of the Women of Katakhali to the Center” (translated in Bengali by Shamita Das Dasgupta). Pgs. 66-68 in Her Words: Storytelling with Saris. Monica J. Bose (ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Samhati.

Invited & Editor-Reviewed Professional Organization Brief

Badruddoja. R. (2014). “South Asian-American Women: “Marrying the Traditional with the Modern” (Gender, Work, and Relationships). In Unconventional Wisdom: News You Can Use, Volume 6: A Survey of Recent Family Research and Clinical. Joshua Coleman and Stephanie Coontz (eds.). Miami, FL: Council on Contemporary Families (CCF).

Invited & Refereed/Peer-Reviewed Scholarly Book Review

Badruddoja, R. (2010). Dowry, Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice, edited by Tamsin Bradley, Emma Tomalin, and Mangala Subramaniam (2009), London & New York: Zed Books Limited. Gender & Society, Vol. XX, No. X: 1-3.

Public Sociology

Badruddoja, R. (2008). “Brief History of South Asian Emigration to the U.S.” Porshi, 8:7.

Badruddoja, R. (2008). “’Good’ Muslim, ‘Bad’ Muslim”. The Undercurrent, 2:12, 19.

Badruddoja, R., et al. (1998). “From the Ground Up: Delivering Foodstuff to Low-Income Areas in D.C.” From the Ground Up, Washington, D.C.

Badruddoja, R. (1996). “Urban-Slum Women in Bangladesh and Birth-Control” ICDDR,B, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

FELLOWSHIP IN PUBLIC SOCIOLOGY

The New York Council for the Humanities the Public Scholars Program: Member of the 2015-2017 inaugural cohort of the Council's new Public Scholars program, a highly competitive selection process that results in a 30-member group. The Public Scholars program seeks to form a group of individuals who want to contribute to and benefit from a statewide community of public intellectuals.

I offered the following three public lectures in NYC:

The Fantasy of Normative Motherhood: The Myths of Motherwork & Contesting Maternal 

South Asian Diasporic Fiction: Project of Empire and Consolidation of the American Nation-State 

South Asian American Women: Rupturing the “Third World Woman” and the Meanings of “Arranged Marriage”

SELECTED SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

Keynotes

COVID Cancellation: “Bones of the Womb: Healing Algorithms of Reproductive Trauma,” keynote speaker at the annual meeting of the Southeastern Women's Studies Association (SEWSA), University of South Florida, March 27-29, 2020, St. Petersburg, FL.

“A Call for Reproductive Equity: Healing “Algorithms of Oppression” by “Singing Over the Bones”, keynote speaker at the annual Museum of Motherhood Conference, Manhattan College, April 6-7, 2019, Bronx, NY.

“The White Feminist Fantasy and Violence Against Women of Color”, keynote speaker at the annual Lasallian Women’s Conference, Manhattan College, April 3, 2017, Bronx, NY.

“Worn Out! Motherwork in the Age of Austerity,” keynote speaker at the annual Women’s History Conference, Sarah Lawrence College, March 6-7, 2015, Bronxville, NY.

Invited Book Readings

“Eyes of the Storms: The Voices of South Asian-American Women,” a book reading at the annual South Asian Literary and Theatre Arts Festival, National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution, November 4-5, 2012 Washington DC (Event sponsored by the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History & Embassy of India, Washington, D.C.; panelists included Nina Godiwalla, author of Suits, and Aatish Taseer, author of Noon).

“Eyes of the Storms: Voices of South Asian-American Women,” a book reading at the 15^th anniversary exhibit of the South Asian Women’s Creative Collective, Queens Museum of Art, August 11, 2012, Queens, NY (Exhibit Dates: August 11, 2012–October 7, 2012).

“Shifting Intimacies: A Reading by South Asian Diasporic Writers,” a book reading at the annual meeting of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs, February 29-March 3, 2012, Chicago, IL.

Invited Talks

“The Myths of Multiculturalism and Diversity in Higher Education,” a “Let’s Talk About Race” roundtable discussion sponsored by Critical Race and Ethnicity Studies (CRES), Manhattan College, Spring 2020, Bronx, NY.

“Queering Academia: On Being Queer and Brown,” a panel discussion at the Lasallian Women and Gender Resource Center, Manhattan College, April 2019, Bronx, NY.

“The Fantasy of Normative Motherhood,” a talk at the annual meeting of the Museum of Motherhood Conference, Manhattan College, April 30-May 2, 2015, Bronx, NY.

“Denim Day NYC Speak Out and Call to Action: Ending Campus Sexual Violence,” panelist at Denim Day NYC, Fordham College, April 27, 2015, Bronx, NY.

“Gender-Queering the South Asian Diaspora: Challenging Normative Spatial Powers,” a lecture and workshop at the annual meeting of the Muslim GLBTQ Retreat, May 23-26, 2014, Philadelphia, PA.

Maternal Ideology & State Control of Women’s Bodies,” a guest speaker at the annual Museum of Motherhood Conference, Museum of Motherhood, March 6-8, 2014, New York, NY.

“Queering South Asians,” a guest speaker at Trikone’s DesiQ 2013, University of California San Francisco Mission Bay, July 4-6, 2013, San Francisco, CA.

"Immigrant Families as They Really Are: South Asian-American Women and the Tropes of Intimate Partnership," a guest speaker at the 16^th annual meeting of the Council on Contemporary Families, April 5-6, 2013, University of Miami, FL. 

“Navigating the Professional Opportunities Maze: Women in the Workplace,” a guest speaker at the American Association of Bangladeshi Engineers & Architects, Stanford University, December 6, 2010, Palo Alto, CA.

“The ABCD Conundrum: Women, Marriage, and Alternative Formations of Power,” a guest speaker at the annual meeting of the Central California Research Symposium, Fresno State, April 13, 2010, Fresno, CA.

“South Asian Americans Negotiating Queer Identities,” a guest speaker at the Central Valley Cultural Heritage Institute, Fresno State, April 28, 2009, Fresno, CA.

“Racial and Ethnic Imaginary: Barack Obama and the Meanings of Blackness,” a guest lecture at the Department of Sociology, University of Dhaka, January 10, 2009, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Peer-Reviewed Conference Presentations

“Bones of the Womb: Healing Algorithms of Reproductive Trauma,” paper presentation at the annual meeting of the Southeastern Women's Studies Association(SEWSA), University of South Florida, March 11-13, 2021, St. Petersburg, FL.

"The White Feminist Fantasy: Unraveling the Myth of Normative Motherhood,” a workshop presentation at the annual Ancient Song Doula conference, Decolonize Birth: Addressing the Criminalization of Black & Brown People Within the Healthcare System, September 22-23, 2018, Brooklyn, NY.

“Symbolic Pollution: Towards a Feminist Perspective on Menstruation,” a paper presentation at the annual Society for Menstrual Cycle Research conference (SMCR), Kennesaw State University, June 23-24, 2017, Kennesaw, GA.

“South Asian Diasporic Fiction: Project of Empire and Consolidation of the American Nation-State,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the National Women’s Studies Association, November 12-15, 2015, Milwaukee, WI.

“Rupturing the ‘Third World Woman’ and Arranged Marriage,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the Eastern Sociological Society, February 27-29, 2015, Manhattan, NY.

“Mothering, Love, and Labor: New Feminist Perspectives,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the National Women’s Studies Association, November 13-16, 2014, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

“The South Asian Diaspora & Queer Spaces: Challenging Normative Spatial Powers” & “Contesting Motherhood, Mothering, and Maternal Ideology,”paper presentations at the annual meeting of the Eastern Sociological Society, February 20-23, 2014, Baltimore, MD.

“Contesting Maternal Ideology: The Yonic Myths of Motherhood” & “Decolonizing the South Asian Diaspora,” paper presentations at the winter annual meeting of the Sociologist for Women in Society, February 6-9, 2014, Nashville, TN.

“Diasporic Fiction: Project of Empire and Consolidation of the Nation-State,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the South Asian Literary Association, January 8-9, 2014, Chicago, IL.

“Performing Motherhood and Maternal Ideologies,” a paper presentation at the annual Museum of Motherhood Conference, Museum of Motherhood, May 2-4, 2013, New York, NY.

“Symbolic Pollution: Towards a Formal Sociological and Feminist Perspective on Menstruation,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association & “Bittersweet Voices: Decolonizing the South Asian Diaspora,” a paper presentation at the Sociologists for Women in Society at ASA, August 10-13, 2013, New York, NY.

“The Multicultural Beast,” a paper presentation at the annual meeting of the California Sociological Association, November 13-14, 2010, Riverside, CA.

SELECTED SERVICE TO PROFESSION

Advisory Boards

Museum of Motherhood since 2013

Society for Mother Studies since 2015

Council on Contemporary Families 2013-2015

Editorial Review Boards

Journal of Motherhood Initiative (ISSN 1488-0989) since July 2013

Journal of Mother Studies since 2015

Journal Peer Reviewer

Sexuality & Culture since 2018

Studies in Social Justice since 2018

Gender & Society (ISSN 0891-2432) since September 2013

Feminist Formations (ISSN 1040-0656) since April 2008

Governing Council Positions

National Women Studies Association (NWSA)

Co-Chair for Women of Color Leadership Project (WoCLP), elected term 2015

Conflict Resolution Committee Chair, elected term 2005-2007 & 2014-2016

Elections Committee, elected term 2008-2010

Feminist Membership/Mentorship

Sociologists for Women in Society (SWS)

Cheryl Allyn Miller Award Committee, Fall 2020

Mentoring Program for Graduate Students, since 2014

National Women Studies Association (NWSA)

Selected to participate in Women of Color Leadership Project (WoCLP), 2014

Mentoring Program for Graduate Students, since 2014

Conference Proposal Review Committee, 2005-2008

AWARDS & NOMINATIONS

Manhattan College: Nominated for Costello Teaching Excellence Award, Spring 2016-2020

Sociologists for Women in Society (SWS): Nominated for Feminist Lecturer Award, Spring 2014

California State University-Fresno: Outstanding Faculty Publication of the Year, Spring 2009

National Women’s Studies Association (NWSA): Women of Color Caucus Essay Award, June 2005

FEDERAL GRANTS

Violence Against Women Act (VAWA): Received $4,500 in 1999 from the state of New Jersey to support the operating budget for a South Asian domestic violence advocacy group, Manavi.

Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Grant: Received $3,200 in 1999 from the state of New Jersey to maintain a shelter, Ashiana, for South Asian victims of domestic violence.

CERTIFICATIONS & LANGUAGES

International Holisitic Medicine Practitioner (2021)

Domestic Violence Specialist (DVS) (1999)

Fluency in everyday, spoken, colloquial Bengali; Basic knowledge of Hindi and Urdu