Marco Avilés teaches and writes about contemporary Latin America, with a special focus on Indigenous histories, politics and futures.
He was born and raised in Peru, in a Quechua-mestizo family. A journalist, editor, and professional writer, he has contributed to several media outlets, including The New York Times, El País, and Radio Ambulante, and was editor-in-chief of Etiqueta Negra magazine. He is the author of three books: No soy tu cholo and De dónde venimos los cholos, about migration and race in the Andes; and Día de visita, about incarcerated women in a Peruvian prison, which was adapted into a film, El caso Monroy. His next book project analyzes the works of a new generation of Mapuche, Quechua and Aymara artists.
Before earning his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania, he worked as a cook and interpreter for Latin American and indigenous farmworkers in New England. He has also worked to promote journalism and storytelling within underrepresented communities in collaboration with organizations such as Words Without Borders, the CUNY Bilingual Journalism Graduate Program, and the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas at the University of Texas-Austin.
He loves the mountains and cooking for family, friends and students.
Education
- Ph.D., MA, University of Pennsylvania
- BA Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos (Peru)
