Bio

siri gurudev hernández is a trans nonbinary writer, performance artist, activist, and researcher from what we know today as Bogotá, Colombia. As an Arts Research with Communities of Color Fellow, they will conduct a year-long ethnographic research project with the San Antonio-based Esperanza Peace & Justice Center. They have a PhD in theater and performance studies from the University of Texas at Austin. Their work orbits around the questioning and destabilization of the gender binary, the visibilization of racialized gendered violence, and the transformative work of embodied critical spirituality. hernández encountered performance when they started gender transition and joined activist collectives in their home city in 2011. They got fascinated by the political potency of Latinx/e performance art, site-specific work, and street activism.

siri gurudev hernández and Esperanza Peace & Justice Center
Dr. hernández will study the unique history, culture, and values of the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center through a creative ethnography that includes participatory research, surveys, interviews, and heart-felt convivencia. They will focus on the ways Esperanza embodies solidarity across minority groups in San Antonio and beyond.