I'm an independent scholar and freelance writer, with academic background and credentials in history, computer science, and women's studies. I’m loosely affiliated with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where I'm part of the Global South Working Group.

My current personal research is on the political and social theory of personhood (and citizenship, kinship, and ostracism) in both the social contract tradition and in ethnographic scholarship. I recently contributed to and coordinated work on a book on group identity and civil war. I have also studied the social history of labor migration between Spain and Germany in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, especially from the 1930s through the 1980s, and the history of the intertwined efforts of (mostly) Evangelical conservatives and (mostly) Catholic radicals in opposition to abortion in the U.S. South from the 1960s through the 1990s.

I also work for hire as an editor, researcher, writing coach, and business consultant. I recently edited the biography of Frank Netter (1906-1991), the artist and surgeon who invented modern medical illustration and taught generations of doctors worldwide. I also recently researched and led the development and implementation of the procedures that form the basis for the University of North Carolina's compliance with the state's 2006 immigration law mandating use of the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify system. In the fall of 2010, among other commitments, I am editing the biography of a New Deal Congressman, consulting on a documentary film, and helping to develop a web-based magazine.

Location

Austin, TX

Disciplines

• History
• Philosophy
• Political Science
• Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• Computer Sciences
• Journalism, Media, and Communication

Affiliation

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill / Freelance writer, editor, and consultant

Website

http://www.linkedin.com/in/patinman