About Holly
RESEARCHER, EDUCATOR, PUBLIC SPEAKER, & STRATEGIST
Rooted in Black history, refined by research,
and driven by the future of the culture.
Areas of Specialization: 20th and 21st Century African American literature; Black literature & Social Movements; Hip Hop studies; Film studies; LGBTQ+ and gender studies; Popular culture.
I am a doctoral candidate. I specialize in 20th- and 21st-century African American literature. My research explores topics such as police brutality, revolutionary violence, Black martyrdom, legacy, and Hip Hop culture, spanning the Black Power Movement to the Black Lives Matter Movement. I analyze how resistance to extrajudicial killings is represented through literature, film, and popular culture, focusing on four generations of Black activists. Additionally,
I am a John D. McCabe Award for Excellence in Teaching award-winning instructor of first-year writing and African American literature, a certified film studies instructor, a poet, and a recipient of doctoral fellowships.
Scholarship in Motion
My work lives at the intersection of the archive and the community. By transcribing the legacies of Black activism across four generations, I aim to bridge the gap between historical literature and modern social movements.
current portfolio
My research centers on police brutality, revolutionary violence, Black martyrdom, legacy, and Hip Hop as key sites of Black political thought and cultural production.
I deliver interdisciplinary lectures that synthesize Black history, literature, music, and film to interrogate the evolving pulse of Black cultural production.
I teach African American literature and culture through an engaging, multimodal, and interdisciplinary approach that centers texts by Black writers, rappers, and scholar-activists.
I successfully translated my doctoral research into a high-impact undergraduate course, bridging archival theory with modern classroom practice.
I am committed to fostering interdisciplinary collaboration across research, teaching, DEI initiatives, and academic leadership.
My poetry explores Black thought, identity, history, and Black love. Explore my poetry page to hear me recite my poems.
recent publications
"With Bated Breath (In Memory of Greg)": Marquette Literary Review, Issue 16
Writing As a Black Scholar: Teaching Black Activism, Hip-Hop, and the Cost of Activism" for Bedford Bits Blog
"Capacitating Community: The Writing Innovation Symposium" for Community Literacy Journal
Current Read & current listen
current read:
“Walk a Mile in My Shoes” by Elvis Presley from the EPiC (Elvis Presley in Concert) Album.
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable
current Listen:
Let's Work Together!
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Let's Work Together! *
As a Ph.D. candidate and public scholar, I am passionate about bridging the gap between archives and communities. Whether it’s a keynote on the history of Hip-Hop, a workshop on digital activism, or a guest lecture on the legacy of Malcolm X, I am eager to collaborate.
Current Focus Areas for 2026:
Guest Lectures: View the lecture introduction video for topics. Then, book Holly.
Curriculum Design: Incorporating Black social movements, Hip Hop rhetoric, and AAVE into the humanities.
Media&Public Scholarship: Translating academic research for broadcast and community audiences. See the press kit for more information.
Contact & engagement
Public Scholarship • Lectures • Creative Commissions
Holly e. burgess
Ph.D. Candidate & Cyril E. Smith Trust Family Fellow
Research: Black Literature & Social Movements
Dissertation: "Transcribing Brutality: Violence, Martyrdom, and Legacy in Black Literature and Social Movements"
Web: hollyeburgess.com
EMAIL: holly-burgess@outlook.com
she/her
“The people are the makers of world history.”