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Cristina Martinez Istillarte

Instructor of Spanish

Cristina Martinez Istillarte
Cristina Martinez Istillarte

Cristina Martínez Istillarte received her PhD in Cultural Studies from Tulane University where she has taught Spanish, Literature, and Film courses. Her research interests comprise the relationship between Spain and Equatorial Guinea during the Francoist period, representations of Africans and Afro-Spaniards, and the activism and artistic responses of these communities in contemporary Spanish culture. Cristina earned a M.A in Spanish at Florida Atlantic University and bachelor’s degree in Translation and Intercultural Communication in Spain. As an educator, facilitator, and cultural researcher, Cristina has dedicated the last 9 years to social justice, diversity, and inclusion in higher education. Cristina participated in the 2023 cohort of the Nancy M. Marsiglia Institute at Loyola Law School and currently serves as Program Manager at Puentes New Orleans. 

Recent Publications

  • “Between the Well-Intended Drama & the Prolific Light Comedy: Spanish (Mis)representations of Otherness in Netflix”. Netflix Spain: Critical Perspectives Ed. Xosé Boán and Jorge González del Pozo. 2023. Routledge.
  • “Y tú, ¿por qué eres negro? Entrevista a Rubén H. Bermúdez” Afro-Hispanic Review (Volume 39 N.1). 2020. Vanderbilt University.
  • “María Egipciaca y ’Breaking the Waves’: la irresistible atracción de la prostituta mártir” Comunicación y Género, 2(2), (2019): 183-191. https://doi.org/10.5209/cgen.66509

Degrees

Ph.D., Tulane University; M.A., Florida Atlantic University; B.A., Universidad Europea de Valencia

Classes Taught

  • Spanish & Latin American Literature & Film
  • Intro to Spanish Culture
  • Spanish Conversation & Composition
  • Elements of Spanish III (Intermediate Spanish) Elements of Spanish II (Introductory Spanish II) 
  • Advanced Spanish Language and Culture

Areas of Expertise

Iberian Contemporary Cultural Studies