Darlene Garcia (she/her) is a Chicana from South Central who prides themselves in their culture and community. She is currently a fourth-year transfer student attending the University of California, Los Angeles. Through her undergraduate research, Darlene illuminates the livelihoods of street vendors, specifically that of tamaleras utilizing ethnographic fieldwork.

In the midst of a crisis impacting workers, her research is dedicated to discussing the adversities of street vending presented by the accounts of women. It is one of Darlene’s primary aims to explore the ways in which gender plays a role in their households and the survival strategies that are vital to their livelihoods. Utilizing ethnographic methods, she hopes to bring visibility to the “invisible” issues affecting women as their involvement is detrimental to the economic sector.

This endeavor results from her witnessing the resilient women in her life pursue their ambitions and act in defiance to patriarchal expectations. Her passions extend from this idea as she creates conversations about the struggles women experience in maintaining their own businesses and household responsibilities.

Darlene’s aspirations are rooted in challenging these systems of oppression and supporting su comunidad. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in Chicanx Studies and Sociology, her primary goal is to attend graduate school and continue her research on street vendors.