BSW student Lauren Cavagnini successfully defended her thesis as the culmination of her studies as a Departmental and University Honors student.
Lauren's thesis is titled, What Justice Can Be: Looking at the Imprisonment Experiences of Trans and Gender Non-Conforming Inmates Through Queer Theory, and the Role of Social Workers in Abolition Practices.
The abstract is as follows:
This paper aims to review the literature discussing the issues that transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) individuals deal with while imprisoned in the United States, and to use queer theory’s concepts of gender performace and gender control as a way to examine why they face such high rates of violence. This paper also aims to offer suggestions on how social workers can better engage in non-carceral social work practice on micro and macro levels.
Dr. Rachel Wright served as thesis chair, with Dr. Denise Levy serving as departmental second reader, and Dr. Marc Kissel (Anthropology) serving as outside reader.
Lauren's topic is important to the social work profession and social justice within our society, and completing an honors thesis is a major accomplishment. Please join us in congratulating Lauren for her outstanding achievement!
Lauren Cavagnini Photo
