James River Robbins
James Robbins
James River Robbins is an adjunct instructor in the Department of Anthropology and an affiliate faculty member of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program. He is also a doctoral candidate in applied anthropology and an MA student in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at the University of South Florida. His current research focuses on language access and the experiences of Spanish-speaking Latina/o/e/x/Hispanic individuals seeking abortion care in NYC. He has previously worked or currently works on several interdisciplinary projects on a variety of topics including the experiences of frontline COVID-19 nurses in North Carolina, Amazigh women’s equity in argan oil production in Morocco, and sexual/reproductive health education in the US South. He occupies several service positions including on the boards of the Society for Applied Anthropology’s Human Rights and Social Justice Committee and the Crisis in Public Anthropology Working Group.
Read more about River’s work on his website.
EDUCATION
M.A. in Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Grad Certificate in Women, Gender, and Sexual Studies, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
B.S. in Economics, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
B.S. in Psychology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
B.A. in Sociology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
TEACHING
Linguistic Anthropology
Anthropology of Gender
Cultural Anthropology
Intro to Anthropology
Economic Anthropology
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Language access, abortion, intersectionality, reproductive justice, medical interpretation, critical social justice activism, health equity, gender and healthcare, embodiment/emplacement, raciolinguistics, neoliberalism, and ethnomusicology.
SELECT PUBLICATIONS
Journal
Robbins, J. (2025). For Who: the AAA Boycott and Critical Social Justice Activism. Annals of Anthropological Practice. e70022. https://doi.org/10.1111/napa.
Robbins, J. & Freidus, A. (2024). Neoliberalism and Work-Life Balance Among COVID-19 Nurses. Human Organization. https://doi.org/10.1080/
Media
Robbins, J. (2026). Who is responsible for professional development in graduate school? World of Work Blog. Anthropology Career Readiness Network. Who is responsible for professional development in graduate school? – The Anthropology Career Readiness Network
Corona, C. and Robbins, J. (2026). Cultivating Camaraderie During Crisis: Anthropology Students Respond to a Hostile Climate. Dispatches. SfAA. Cultivating Camaraderie during Crisis: Anthropology Students Respond to a Hostile Climate – Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA)
Robbins, J. (2026). Reproductive Justice is a Labor Issue. Academe Blog. Reproductive Justice Is a Labor Issue | ACADEME BLOG
Robbins, J. (2026). At the Clinic Door: The Language of the Antis. Council on Anthropology & Reproduction Newsletter. https://sway.cloud.microsoft/
Robbins, J. with A. Freidus and L. Caro. (2021). The Importance of Community in the Experiences of Frontline Nurses in North Carolina During COVID 19. SFAA News. https://appliedanthro.org/