Tara Martin López

Tara Martin López

Tara López is an Assistant Professor of Ethnic Studies at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota. Social and cultural movements, especially among working class and communities of color, comprise López’s research interests. In her recent book, Chuco Punk: Sonic Insurgency in El Paso for the American Music Series at the University of Texas Press, López brings to light the dynamic and rich historic, cultural, and social roots of punk rock in El Paso from the late 1970s to the early 2000s. By centering narrative on punx themselves, especially the women and Mexican American punx who comprised the dominant force in this music world, the far-reaching influence of El Paso punk rock on music, history, and space emerges. In her downtime, she loves to listen to music; run; read authors like Albert Camus, Sandra Cisneros, and Yoko Ogawa; play with her dogs Bonita and Luna; skateboard; and spend time with her family in her home state of New Mexico.