Mariah Aliza Kaye Bender is a doctoral student in the History Department. They earned a BA in History and Education from Saint Louis University where their senior thesis analyzed the American repression of the Haitian economy in the period following its independence. Mariah earned an MA in Humanities from the University of Chicago where their research focused on the role of West Central African religious practices in Haitian Vodou and its impact on national identity and citizenship. Their research explores the intersection of African traditional religion and the construction of the post-colonial state in Haiti and Colombia during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Their research methodologies incorporate critical theory, Black womanist theology, and transnational identity formation. Mariah is a Fulbright alumni and former history educator, who taught both internationally and nationally with secondary students.