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School of Languages, Cultures, and Race Faculty

Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo, Ph.D.

Professor of Comparative Ethnic Studies
Professor of American Studies and Culture

Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo was born and raised in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. She spent her childhood mostly by the beach, and perhaps because of this, loves the sound of the (Atlantic) ocean and the (Caribbean) sea more than any other nature-made sound. These days she spends her free time (beautiful oxymoron) with her wife Mary and their mini schnauzers Iloh and Arly.

Carmen obtained her B.A. in sociology from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez campus. Her M.A., also in sociology, is from Washington State University, and her Ph.D. is in American Studies from Washington State University as well. She has published a number of books and scholarly articles (some of them are listed below).

Research Interests
  • Puerto Rican and Latina/o/x studies
  • Race and gender in popular culture
  • Latina/o literature and constructions of ethnicity and gender
  • Colonialism/imperialism and empire
  • Post–9/11 cultural and rhetorical productions
  • Race relations in the US
Teaching Interests

Carmen uses literature, history, sociology, ethnic studies, popular culture, and a little bit of luck to teach about issues of race and structural inequalities. On a broad level, she teaches about the relationship between social markers and identities (such as gender, race/ethnicity, class, nationality, sexuality, etc.), privilege, power, and the resulting unequal distribution of resources.

Selected Publications
Books
Book Chapters
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. 2023. “Latinx Identities and the Matter of Choice (Or More Simply, All Identities are Chosen…with Consequences).” In Latinx Experiences: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Hortencia Jiménez and María Villaseñor, eds. Sage Publications. Pp.
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. and Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo. 2020. “De-Racializing Representations of Femininity and the Marketing of Latinidad: Zoe Saldaña and L’Oreal’s True Match Campaign.” In Theories of the Flesh: Philosophical Essays on Gender, Race, Sexuality, Global Politics, and Latinidad. José Medina, Andrea Pitts, and Mariana Ortega, eds. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. 2019. “Latinas/os in Hollywood: Contemporary Representations in Black and White.” In The Myth of Colorblindness: Race and Ethnicity in American Cinema. Sarah Turner and Sarah Nilsen, eds. New York: Palgrave, pp. 215-236.
  • Bloodsworth-Lugo, Mary K. and Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo. 2019. “The End of the World, Hollywood, and the Endurance of Military Violence: Elysium and World War Z.” In The Myth of Colorblindness: Race and Ethnicity in American Cinema. Sarah Turner and Sarah Nilsen, eds. New York: Palgrave, pp. 283-297.
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. 2019. “Some of my Students are Leprechauns (Or Why it is Difficult for White College Students that Racism is still a Big Deal).” In Teaching with Tension. Philathia Bolton, Cassander Smith, and Lee Bebout Eds. Evanston: Northwestern University Press, pp. 255-266.
  • Bloodsworth-Lugo, Mary K. and Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo. 2013. “The Monster Within: Post-9/11 Narratives and Threat and the US Shifting Terrain of Terror.” In Monster Culture in the 21st Century: A Reader. Marina Levina and Diem-My Bui, Eds. New York: Continuum, pp. 243-255.
  • Bloodsworth-Lugo, Mary K. and Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo. 2013. “Elisions of Race and Stories of Progress: Planet 51 and Princess and the Frog.” In Race, Philosophy, and Film. Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo and Dan Flory, Eds. New York: Routledge, pp. 181-193.
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. 2012. “A Prostitute, a Servant, and a Customer Service Representative: A Latina in Academia.” In Presumed Incompetent. Angela P. Harris, Gabriella Gutierrez y Muhs, et al., eds. Logan: Utah State University Press, Pp. 40-49.
  • Lugo-Lugo, Carmen R. and Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo. 2012. “‘Look out New World, Here we Come’? Race, Racialization, and Sexuality in Four Children’s Animated Films by Disney, Pixar, and Dreamworks.” In Cinematic Sociology: Social Life in Film, Second Edition. Jean-Anne Sutherland and Kathryn Feltey, eds. Thousand Oakes: Sage. Pp. 261-271.
Refereed Articles
Public Writing

Contact Dr. Lugo-Lugo

14204 NE Salmon Creek Avenue, MMC 202
Vancouver, WA 98686
360-546-9641
clugo@wsu.edu

Courses Taught
  • Amer St 520 Colonization, Globalization, and Decolonization
  • Amer St 526 Contemporary Theories of Race and Ethnicity
  • Amer St 590 Seminar in American Studies
    • The Race of Empire
    • Race and Empire
    • The Specter of 9/11
  • CES 101 Intro to Comparative Ethnic Studies
  • CES 151 Intro to Chicano/Latino Studies
  • CES 201 Foundations of Comparative Ethnic Studies
  • CES 254  Comparative Latina/o Cultures
  • CES 260 Race and Racism in US Popular Culture
  • CES/Soc/ W St 300 Intersectionality
  • CES 301 Race and Global Inequality
  • CES 353/Eng 345 Contemporary Latino/a Literatures
  • CES 357 Latinas/os and U.S. Popular culture
  • CES 358 Latinos/as in Film
  • CES 440 Global Social Justice
  • CES 454 Latinas in U.S. Culture and Society
  • CES 489 Everyday Struggles for Justice and Equality
  • CES 491 Theories of Racism and Ethnic Conflicts