Mapping Meaning, the Journal (Issue No. 2)

Mapping for Social Change:
Cartography and Community
Activism in Mobilizing Against
Colonial Gender Violence
Annita Lucchesi
Annita Lucchesi is a doctoral student in the
Cultural, Social, and Political Thought program at
the University of Lethbridge, located on Treaty 7
territory. She is a Southern Cheyenne descendant,
and her ancestors made their home where the
Rocky Mountains meet the Plains, in presentday
Denver. She holds a BA in Geography from
the University of California, Berkeley, and a MA
in American Studies from Washington State
University. Annita is the founder of the MMIW
Database, a comprehensive data source on cases
of missing and murdered indigenous women in
the US and Canada, and her current academic
research examines how community mapping
projects can generate new knowledge and tell
more holistic stories on such violence. In her work
as a researcher and advocate, she frequently
assists in community and policy responses to
gender violence in indigenous communities,
and leads workshops on indigenous and critical
mapping.
www.annitalucchesi.com
14 Mapping Meaning, the Journal