Biography

Dawy Rkasnuam is a Ph.D student in Sociology at USC. Her research uses intersectionality and the reproductive justice framework to explore how social movements, medicine, and law mediate health and cultural outcomes in the realm of reproductive politics. Her current project examines how reproductive justice activists across different regions respond to changing political climates.

Prior to attending USC, she did research and advocacy work on immigration detention at Detention Watch Network in Washington, DC. She holds a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland, College Park, during which time she conducted immigration research as a research assistant at the UMD Center for International Policy Exchanges and as an intern at the Migration Policy Institute. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from California State University, Los Angeles. Dawy is originally from Bangkok, Thailand but grew up in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California. Outside of work, she enjoys swimming, attending concerts, and cooking Thai food.