Austin Lee is a scholar who focuses on extended kin networks, communal mothering practices, and the nuances of Black sexuality and gender. Currently serving as a Society of Fellows Postdoctoral Scholar at Boston University, she earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Pennsylvania. Her dissertation, “Feeling Communal Motherhood: Black Women’s Navigations of Class, Gender, and Parental Status,” offers a comprehensive examination of Black women’s relationship with societal expectations of motherhood and community care.

Drawing from semi-structured interviews with 80 Black mothers and childless women, Dr. Lee’s research provides a unique perspective on how parental status and social class influence experiences with communal motherhood. By utilizing affect theory, she delves into the complex emotions and pressures associated with these practices, thereby broadening the discourse on race, gender, emotion, and extended kin networks.

Lee’s previous research delves into the interplay of antiblackness, heterosexism, and classism. She focuses on how race influences anti-gay religious stigma within white and Black churches, revealing the complex connections between race, religion, and sexuality. Additionally, she employs affect theory to shed light on the emotional conflicts and racial connotations intertwined with gentrification. Her research has been recognized with numerous fellowships, such as the NSF Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant and the University of Pennsylvania Center for the Study of Ethnicity, Race, and Immigration Turner Schulman Graduate Research Fellowship.

Beyond her research, Dr. Lee has been an instructor at Boston University and Bryn Mawr College, delivering courses such as “Race, Class, and Gender: Intersectionality & The Social World.” Her commitment to promoting diversity in higher education is further exemplified through her mentorship roles at the University of Pennsylvania Africana Studies Summer Program and her tenure as a diversity and inclusion fellow. Dr. Lee’s work is a testament to her dedication to understanding and addressing the complexities of race, gender, family, and sexuality in contemporary society.