Library Guides: Ethnic Studies Resources at CUNY: Home

About This Guide

This guide compiles physical and digital resources that support research on Ethnic Studies across CUNY institutions. Many of the resource organizations featured in this guide were established as the result of collaborative efforts between scholar-activists at CUNY who sought to not only advance research aims, but also build community. Informed by this history, we crafted the entries below in collaboration with the organizations they describe. Our aim is to represent the disciplines and communities we serve on their terms. The purpose of this guide is to encourage connections between scholars of Ethnic Studies, members of the CUNY community, and the resources listed here. To that end, we have included contact and access information where possible.

CUNY complete list of centers and institutes

Created by: Jahanara Alamgir, Adjunct Library Specialist, Baruch College
Inquiries and updates: J. Silvia Cho, Resource Sharing Librarian, CUNY Graduate Center.

Note on Navigation

A complete list of resources is available on this page. To view a list of resources related to a specific ethnic group or discipline, navigate to the relevant tab in the sidebar. To account for the complexity of ethnic identity, some resources appear on multiple lists devoted to different ethnic groups. Ethnic studies resources that are general in scope appear under Multidisciplinary Ethnic Studies Resources.

Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI)

Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI)
The Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI) is a CUNY-wide organization that supports research, conducts outreach, and provides resources related to Asian and Asian American communities. The Institute has four disciplinary focuses: Asian American Studies, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, and Trade & Technology Studies. As part of their work, AAARI publicizes research results to the community and facilitates points of connection between CUNY and the greater Asian American community.

Contact: Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI)

Address: 25 W 43rd St, Suite 1000, New York, NY 10036
Email: info@aaari.info
Phone(s): 212-869-0182 | 212-869-018

Africana Research Center

Africana Research Center
Established in 1969, the Brooklyn College–based Africana Research Center supports scholarship in the field of Africana Studies, and seeks to explore and remediate historical disparities regarding the Black experience. Further, it seeks to interrogate traditional frameworks of knowledge that have governed the analysis of people of Africa and the African diaspora. The Center sponsors programs and internships to enhance student understanding of this scholarship. It also preserves academic products by faculty and includes a collection of African art, archival documents, and rare books featuring first editions by foundational scholars such as Carter G. Woodson, W.E.B. Du Bois, and Booker T. Washington.

Contact: Lynda Day, Professor

Address: Brooklyn College, 2900 Bedford Ave, 3107a James Hall, Brooklyn, NY 11210
Email: lday@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-951-5597

Black Studies Colloquium

Black Studies Colloquium
The Black Studies Colloquium supports faculty research at Baruch College by creating a forum where scholars can discuss, workshop, and share their work.The organization produces an event series that includes programming such as film screenings, live performances, panel discussions, and presentations of scholarship at varied stages of the research lifecycle. The BSC also collaborates with the Program on African Social Research (PASR), based at the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College, to highlight the work of African scholars on the global stage.
BSC Event Series
Program on African Social Research (PASR)

Contact: Rojo Robles, Director (2023–2024), rojo.roblesmejias@baruch.cuny.edu
Contact: Keisha Allan, Director (2023–2024), keisha.allan@baruch.cuny.edu

Caribbean Research Center

Caribbean Research Center
The Caribbean Research Center at Medgar Evers College is an academic unit that contributes research on the experiences of members of the Caribbean diaspora and Caribbean Americans in New York City as well as broader Caribbean and diasporic communities around the world. The Center studies social, economic, political, and cultural dimensions of Caribbean communities.

Contact: Caribbean Research Center, crc@mec.cuny.edu

Casa de las Américas

Casa de las Américas
Casa de las Américas empowers Latinx students at LaGuardia Community College by facilitating meaningful academic and professional experiences such as research assistantships and internships. Through partnerships with local organizations, La Casa builds a network of Latinx students and scholars to uplift the community and create opportunities for educational and professional advancement.

Contact: Casa de las Américas

Address: CUNY LaGuardia Community College, 31-10 Thomson Ave, M-Building, M-141, Long Island City, NY 11101
Email: casa@lagcc.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-482-5995
Access Hours: La Casa hours are Monday–Friday, 9:00 A.M.–5:00 P.M.

Center for Black Literature (CBL)

Center for Black Literature (CBL)
Medgar Evers College’s Center for Black Literature (CBL) publicizes and celebrates the literary output of people from Africa and of the African diaspora. CBL creates channels for students, teachers, and members of the public to read, explore, consider, appreciate, and research Black literature. CBL’s programming includes the National Black Writers Conference, a writing retreat, and outreach programs for young and elderly people.

Among CBL’s resources are:

CBL's Digital Archive
Demonstrates the diversity of Black experiences through literature and a digital archive.
CBL's Reading List
Also demonstrates the diversity of Black experiences through literature and a digital archive.
The History and Legacy of the Center for Black Literature: An Online Exhibition
The digitization of CBL’s archives culminated in a project titled "The History and Legacy of the Center for Black Literature: An Online Exhibition."

Contact: Center for Black Literature

Address: Medgar Evers College, CUNY, 1534 Bedford Ave, Center for Black Literature, 2nd Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11216
Email: info@centerforblackliterature.org
Mailing address: Center for Black Literature, Medgar Evers College, CUNY, 1650 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11225
Phone: 718-804-8884

Contact: Brenda M. Greene, Ph.D., Professor of English, and Founder and Executive Director

Email: drgreene@centerforblackliterature.org; copy drgreeneassistant@gmail.com

Center for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies

Center for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies
The Center for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies contributes to the development of its correspondent academic program at Queens College. In partnership with the Queens College Library, the Center for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies embarked on cataloging the 6,000 volumes and archival materials that comprise its multilingual Harry J. Psomiades Greek Studies Library in 2023.
Harry J. Psomiades Greek Studies Library

Contact: Carlo Minchillo, Substitute Librarian for Research & Information Services at Queens College Library

Address: Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Benjamin S. Rosenthal Library, Queens, NY 11367-1597
Offices: Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Benjamin S. Rosenthal Library, Rooms 343 and 344, Queens, NY 11367-159
Email: carlo.minchillo@qc.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-997-3748

Contact: Dr. Gerasimus Katsan, Associate Professor and Director

Address: Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Jefferson Hall, Room 302, Flushing, NY 11367-1597
Email: gerasimus.katsan@qc.cuny.edu

Access (Queens College Library): Limited to CUNY students, faculty, and staff; Empire State University and Adelphi University patrons; and Queens College alumni. See hours here.

Center for Jewish Studies at CUNY Graduate Center

Center for Jewish Studies at CUNY Graduate Center
The Center for Jewish Studies serves as a scholarly hub for faculty involved in Jewish Studies across academic departments at the Graduate Center and all of CUNY to connect and collaborate on research projects. The Rosenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies and the Institute for Sephardic Studies fall under the umbrella of the Center for Jewish Studies. The Institute of Sephardic Studies is home to a notable oral history collection that documents the narratives of Sephardic Jewish immigrants to the United States.

Contact: Center for Jewish Studies

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Room 5380, New York, NY 10016
Email: gccenterjewishstudies@gmail.com

Contact: Jane S. Gerber, Professor Emerita and Director of the Institute for Sephardic Studies

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Room 5114.03, New York, NY 10016
Email: gerberjs@aol.com
Phone: 212-817-1946

Center for Jewish Studies at Queens College

Center for Jewish Studies at Queens College
The Queens College Center for Jewish Studies creates a space for academic discourse about Judaism and Jewish history and culture. Its work and programming, including film screenings, lectures, and performance, bridge the gap between the formal academic unit dedicated to Jewish Studies at Queens College and the broader Jewish community.

Contact: Arnold Franklin, Professor and Director

Address (Center for Jewish Studies):Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Jefferson Hall, Room 306–310, Flushing NY 11367
Email: arnold.franklin@qc.cuny.edu
Phone(s): 718-997-4530, 718-997-5730

Access: Center for Jewish Studies hours are Monday–Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm.

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies (CLACLS)

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies (CLACLS)
The Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies at the CUNY Graduate Center encourages research on and engagement with Latin American and Caribbean people as well as diasporic communities in the United States, with particular attention to those in New York City. The organization’s Latino Data Project generates and makes available to the public reports on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the experience of Latinos in the United States.
Latino Data Project

Contact: Center for Latin American, Latino and Caribbean Studies

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Room 5419, New York, NY 10016
Email: clacls@gc.cuny.edu

Center for Law and Social Justice

Center for Law and Social Justice
In 1986, a coalition of activists and attorneys connected to Medgar Evers College created the Center for Law and Social Justice (CLSJ) in response to increasing police brutality and killings in Black communities around New York City. CLSJ’s advocacy focuses on issues such as progressive law enforcement reform, voting rights, and redistricting. The research functions of CLSJ involve making accessible reports and presentations on structurally inequitable systems such as the census (and the redistricting it initiates).

Contact: Center for Law and Social Justice

Email: info@clsj.org
Phone: 718-804-8893

Center for Puerto Rican Studies (CENTRO)

Center for Puerto Rican Studies (CENTRO)
CENTRO at Hunter College is the most extensive university institute, library, and archive devoted to recording, preserving, and telling the story of Puerto Ricans in the United States. The Library collection includes both primary and secondary sources, and consists of over 14,000 books, 2,550 dissertations and theses, 3,700 reels of microfilm that represent over 500 periodicals, 600 audio recordings, 514 visual recordings, and 21.3 linear feet of vertical files. The Archives of the Puerto Rican Diaspora comprises over 300 collections of personal papers belonging to notable Puerto Ricans as well as documents from community and government organizations. An ongoing initiative has so far resulted in the digitization of 32,000 materials from the holdings of the Archives, including photographs, written documents, multimedia recordings, and artworks.

Contact: CENTRO Main Office

Address: 695 Park Ave, Room E1429, New York, NY 10065
Email: centro@hunter.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-772-5688

Contact: CENTRO Library & Archives

Address: Silberman School of Social Work, 2180 3rd Ave, 1st Fl, Rm 120, New York, NY 10035
Email: centro.library@hunter.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-396-7874

Access: CENTRO Library & Archives are open to the public by appointment.

Hours: Monday–Friday: 10:00 A.M.–5:00 P.M
Materials are noncirculating, with the exception of the film collection and newspapers on microfilm; to request, email centro.library@hunter.cuny.edu

Center for Urban Research

Center for Urban Research
The Center for Urban Research conducts and presents scholarship on the structures and forces that shape New York City and other large urban areas. A unit of the Graduate Center, the CUR regularly partners with nonprofits and public entities to conduct research in areas such as demographics, immigration, and equity in education. Researchers at the Center collect and analyze large amounts of data and contextualize their findings through visualization and geospatial analysis techniques. Several specialized research units fall under the Center’s umbrella: the New York City Labor Market Information Service (LMIS), the CUNY Mapping Service, and the CUNY Data Service.

Contact: Center for Urban Research

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Suite 6202, New York, NY 10016
Email: cur@gc.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-817-2030

Center on Latinx Rights and Equality (CLRE)

Center on Latinx Rights and Equality (CLRE)
CUNY Law School's Center on Latinx Rights and Equality (formerly the Center on Latino and Latina Rights and Equality [CLORE]) was the first unit of its kind hosted at a law school. CLRE identifies progressive policy stances that reform the legal system of the United States to extend legal protections and civil liberties in areas that impact the Latinx population. The Center has developed an extensive special collection (and a correspondent bibliography) at the CUNY School of Law Library to serve the needs of researchers, lawyers, and scholars in pursuit of legal equity.
Center's correspondent bibliography

Contact: Jenny Rivera, Professor and Director

Email: rivera@mail.law.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-340-4304

CUNY Academic Works

CUNY Academic Works
A collaborative endeavor between the CUNY Office of Library Services and individual CUNY entities, CUNY Academic Works is an institutional repository that stores, preserves, and makes accessible the scholarly and creative output of CUNY faculty, students, and staff. Content is public and discoverable via search engines and includes scholarly articles, presentations, student theses and dissertations, and archival materials in digital form. The service allows users to browse content by institution, discipline, and author, as well as conduct advanced searches. CUNY Academic Works is part of the Digital Commons Network, which brings together the contents of repositories from 655 institutions.
Browse by institution
Browse by discipline
Browse content by author
Digital Commons Network

Contact: CUNY Office of Library Services / CUNY Academic Works

Address: 205 E 42nd St, New York, NY 10017
Email: academicworks@cuny.edu
Phone: 646-664-8061

Contact information for individual college administrators

CUNY Dominican Studies Institute (CUNY DSI)

CUNY Dominican Studies Institute (CUNY DSI)
The CUNY DSI Archives and Library at CCNY is the first and only repository outside of the Dominican Republic whose sole focus is the preservation, dissemination and accessibility of resources pertaining to the lives and experiences of Dominican people. Encompassing primary and secondary sources, the Dominican Library provides access to books, doctoral and master’s degree dissertations, newspaper clippings and journal articles, and multimedia resources. The primary source materials in the Dominican Archives constitute a rich record of the history of Dominican people in the United States. The CUNY DSI Archives and Library also creates and provides access to digital resources that support pedagogical and scholarly aims related to the study of Dominican people and its history.

Contact: CUNY Dominican Studies Institute Archives and Library

Sarah Aponte, Professor and Chief Librarian, aponte@ccny.cuny.edu
Jhensen Ortiz, Librarian, jortiz2@ccny.cuny.edu
Jessy Perez, Archivist, jperez2@ccny.cuny.edu
General Archives inquiries (email): dsiarchives@ccny.cuny.edu

Access: CUNY Dominican Studies Institute Archives and Library is a noncirculating reference library open to the public.

Hours: Monday–Friday, 10:00 A.M.–6:00 P.M.

CUNY Haitian Studies Institute (CUNY HSI)

CUNY Haitian Studies Institute (CUNY HSI)
The CUNY Haitian Studies Institute at Brooklyn College is an interdisciplinary organization that facilitates research about Haiti and Haitians, with emphasis on policies that affect the Haitian community and connect scholarship to the experiences of Haitians. The CUNY HSI provides a forum for scholarly and community collaboration, and its resources include the Bilingual English and Haitian Creole Glossary of Immigration Terms/Glosè Imigrasyon Angle-Kreyòl, a document created to support Haitian immigrants seeking information as well as immigration assistance providers. The HSI Archives are currently under development by inaugural archivist Obden Mondésir.
Bilingual English and Haitian Creole Glossary of Immigration Terms/Glosè Imigrasyon Angle-Kreyòl
Inaugural archivist Obden Mondésir

Contact: CUNY Haitian Studies Institute

Address: Brooklyn College, 2900 Bedford Ave,1108 Boylan Hall, Brooklyn, NY 11210
Email: hsi@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-951-5000, exts. 5187, 1413, or 1496

Contact: Obden Mondésir, HSI Archivist

Email: obden.mondesir@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-951-5000, ext. 2123

Access HSI Circulating collection via CUNY Onesearch

CUNY Mexican Studies Institute (CUNY MSI)

CUNY Mexican Studies Institute (CUNY MSI)
Based at Lehman College, the CUNY MSI explores the Mexican American experience and aims to heighten the visibility and recognize the impact of the Mexican community in the United States. Initiatives and resources advance research, further educational endeavors, and develop community partnerships to serve Mexican Americans in New York. The Mexican Studies Archives and Library (MSAL) provides a devoted space for and access to a collection that documents the history of the Mexican community in the United States, with particular attention to Mexican Americans in New York. The collection is primarily sourced from donations by the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS), El Centro de Investigaciones Interdisciplinarias en Ciencias y Humanidades (CEIICH-UNAM), and private donors.
Mexican Studies Archives and Library (MSAL)

Contact: CUNY Mexican Studies Institute

Address: Lehman College, 250 Bedford Park Blvd W, Carman Hall, Room 241, Bronx, NY 10468-1589
Email: mexican.studies@lehman.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-960-4080

Access: CUNY Mexican Studies Archives and Library is open to the public from Monday–Friday, 10:00 A.M.–5:00 P.M.

Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Center

Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Center
The Kupferberg Holocaust Center is a “learning laboratory” that transcends the conventional function of a library, archive, or museum. The Center originally housed a library of 5,000 books, audiovisual oral history interviews of more than 300 Holocaust survivors, and other documents and artifacts; their collection has since grown and is now preserved in a dedicated building with exhibit space on the campus of Queensborough Community College.

Contact: Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Center

Address: 222-05 56th Ave, Queensborough Community College, Bayside, NY 11364
Email: khc@qcc.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-281-5770

Access:

Regular semester hours: Monday–Friday, 9:00 A.M.–5:00 P.M.

Search Kupferberg Holocaust Center circulating and reference collections via CUNY Onesearch.

Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean (IRADAC)

Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean (IRADAC)
The Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean (IRADAC) expands both the depth and breadth of knowledge and scholarship around people of the African diaspora around the world. The Institute cultivates a community of academics at the CUNY Graduate Center; provides fellowships, including an opportunity at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; and organizes public events.

Contact: Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Room 7114, New York, NY 10016
Email: iradac@gc.cuny.edu

Contact: Herman Bennett, Distinguished Professor and Director

Email: hbennett@gc.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-817-8435

Contact: Zee Dempster, Assistant Coordinator (Africana Studies) and Assistant Director

Email: zdempster@gc.cuny.edu

John D. Calandra Italian American Institute

John D. Calandra Italian American Institute
Affiliated with Queens College, the Calandra Institute researches Italian American history and culture as well as social inequities, particularly in higher education, that affect the Italian American community. The 21,000-volume collection at the Calandra Research Library contains materials that illustrate the experiences of Italian Americans and Italians and document the history and cultures of these communities. The library’s holdings include rare materials in the areas of economics, literature, and politics as well as four special collections featuring Italian books and periodicals, the complete works of Antonio Gramsci, and titles on Italian fascism and Italian communist and anti-fascist movements.
Calandra Research Library

Contact: Calandra Institute

Mailing address: 25 W 43rd St, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10036
Email: calandra@qc.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-642-2094

Access: Calandra Research Library hours are by appointment.

Latin American Writers Institute (LAWI)

Latin American Writers Institute (LAWI)
The Latin American Writers Institute at Hostos Community College champions the literary output of Latin America and seeks to bring Latin American writing to a wider audience. The organization disseminates literary work by Latin American writers through its multilingual journal, Hostos Review/Revista Hostosiana. LAWI also fosters connections between writers from Latin American, Spain, and the United States by hosting creative writing seminars, festivals, and other literary events.

Contact: Latin American Writers Institute, lawi@hostos.cuny.edu

Contact: Inmaculada Lara-Bonilla, Professor and Director/Chief Editor of Hostos Review/Revista Hostosiana

Address: Eugenio María de Hostos Community College, 500 Grand Concourse, Humanities Dept, C-411H, Bronx, New York 10451
Email: ilarabonilla@hostos.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-518-6881

Middle East and Middle Eastern American Center (MEMEAC)

Middle East and Middle Eastern American Center (MEMEAC)
The objective of the Middle East and Middle Eastern American Center is to stimulate scholarly production about the Middle East and by Middle Eastern Americans. The Center was responsible for developing a Master’s Program in Middle Eastern Studies at the CUNY Graduate Center in 2008. MEMEAC also provides research support through workshops and their Dissections seminar series, administers fellowships, and coordinates dissertation writing groups

Contact: Middle East and Middle Eastern American Center

Address: CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Ave, Room 6304.24, New York, NY 10016
Email: memeac@gc.cuny.edu

Contact: Beth Baron, Distinguished Professor and Director

Email: bbaron@gc.cuny.edu
Phone: 212-817-7574

Contact: Jeremy Randall, Assistant Program Officer (Middle Eastern Studies) and Assistant Director, mestudies@gc.cuny.edu

Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women's Activism, 1945 to the Present

Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women's Activism, 1945 to the Present
The Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women’s Activism is a repository of archival materials that trace the work of women’s grassroots activism in Brooklyn since 1945, filtered through the lens of Shirley Chisholm’s experience as a trailblazing activist and politician. An initiative of the Women's and Gender Studies program at Brooklyn College, the project seeks to locate and amplify knowledge of the roles of women and activism during this period. The archive consists of approximately 300 photographs, correspondence documents, periodicals, and multimedia recordings. Additionally, a collection of oral histories compiles interviews with people who knew Chisholm.

Contact: Zinga A. Fraser, PhD, Director

Address: Brooklyn College, 2900 Bedford Ave, 3107b James Hall, Brooklyn, NY 11210
Email: chisholmproject@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-951-5000, ext. 1772

Access: The Shirley Chisholm Project is open to the public.

Queens Memory

Queens Memory
Queens Memory is a community digital archive sponsored by Queens College and Queens Public Library. Their mission is to collect, preserve, and share the local history of Queens and its inhabitants through oral history interviews, photographs, and other born-digital and digitized documents. Deeply embedded within the community it serves, Queens Memory conceives of archiving as the co-creation of a shared narrative that demonstrates the diversity of Queens. The organization’s programming reflects the collaborative nature of their archive and provides Queens residents with the tools and knowledge to share their stories on their terms. At Queens College, Queens Memory works closely with faculty and students who wish to participate in and contribute to the project.

Contact: Queens Memory

Mailing address: Queens Central Library, Attn: Metadata Services, 89-11 Merrick Blvd, Jamaica, NY 11432
Email: queensmemory@queenslibrary.org
Phone (voicemail): 718-990-8532
Queens College contact: Lori Wallach, Queens Memory Outreach Coordinator, lori.wallach@qc.cuny.edu

Access:

QPL Digital Archives
Provides access to the entire Queens Memory collection.
QPL audiovisual archive
Offers a curated selection of oral histories and recordings of podcasts and events.
Queens Memory materials related to Queens College via JSTOR
Queens College Special Collections and Archives website