Marissa Mojena

Throughout the past three years, research has been an integral part of my experience at Penn. My research has been very interdisciplinary and has spanned fields all of the way from Neuroscience to Medical Anthropology. I am currently interested in stigma as a barrier to HIV prevention and treatment, and how stigma is propagated and internalized within Latinx communities. In regards to Latinx communities, stigma surrounding sexual health is deeply rooted and manifests itself in the disparate HIV outcomes that exist today. The goal of my current research project is to situate stigma within broader structural contexts of power and inequality. More specifically, this project seeks to illustrate that stigma is created and propagated by external factors such as the rhetoric used by larger institutions. This project seeks to elucidate how the rhetoric used by the scientific community and local health agencies creates stigmatized identities for Latinx individuals affected with HIV/AIDS and perpetuates stereotypes regarding Latinx culture and sexuality, and how this internalized stigma correlates to HIV health outcomes for Latinx communities in the city of Philadelphia.

• HIV Coordinator at United Community Clinic
• President of CAUSA (Cuban American Undergraduate Student Association)

I love to chat over a good cup of coffee so please reach out if you are interested in chatting about anything research related (or even if it is not research related)!! I also love to cook and am always eager to learn new recipes and share my Cuban recipes :)