Aziza Baker received a 2019-20 Tinker Field Research Grant for her research project, “Recalling Runaways: Studies of Slavery and Absenteeism in Cuba.” This grant was awarded by the Center for Latino/a & Latin American Studies (CLLAS) and funded a month-long summer research trip to Cuba, where Baker was able to access local archives and museums like the Biblioteca Nacional in Havana.

Baker’s research has two points of focus. The first project examines demographic backgrounds of enslaved Africans in the nineteenth century and the different methods that people used to resist enslavement. Baker’s second project uses this demographic data determine the “economic value” of different groups of enslaved people.

A summary of Baker’s research and her experiences from conducting research abroad will be published in CLLAS’s upcoming issue of Cllas Notes.

Aziza Baker is a second-year master’s student in the Department of History. She has a B.A. in Spanish and Portuguese literature from UC Berkely and has studied the history of nineteenth century Cuba under the guidance of her advisor, Dr. Carlos Aguirre.

The Tinker Grant is funded by the Tinker Foundation, with matching funds from the UO Office of Academic Affairs and the Graduate School. Learn more at cllas.uoregon.edu.