Meet Jacqui
Jacqueline (Jacqui) Lazú is a writer, public historian, archivist, and community collaborator whose work bridges scholarship, cultural production, and grassroots activism. Grounded in Latino studies, Puerto Rican studies, and critical race theory, her research explores diaspora, racial justice, and the role of cultural expression in social transformation. She works across literature, performance, and public history to center the lived experiences and political struggles of Latinx and Afro-Caribbean communities across the Americas.
A recognized scholar of the Young Lords Organization, Dr. Lazú has worked to preserve and interpret their legacy through archives, publications, exhibitions, and public programming. Her scholarship brings to light how a Chicago street gang transformed into a revolutionary group that challenged urban renewal, police violence, and racism through grassroots organizing and community care. She has published widely on their cultural and political impact and is the author of forthcoming books that document the history of the Chicago Young Lords and the expressive culture they generated.
Explore her work in community history, cultural memory, and resistance.
Photo: Tyler Pasciak LaReiviere / Sun-Times featuring mural by Sam Kirk.
Latest News
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Book Launch & Upcoming Events
The community is invited to a series of upcoming book talks, conversations, and signings celebrating the release of The Young Lords Speak: Building Revolution on the Streets of Chicago.
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New Book Release: The Young Lords Speak
Award-winning scholar, historian, and author Jacqueline Lazú announces the release of her highly anticipated book, The Young Lords Speak: Building Revolution on the Streets of Chicago. Featuring a foreword written by founder José “Cha Cha” Jiménez just before his passing, The Young Lords Speak tells the story of Chicago’s Young…
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Pre-order Now: The Young Lords Speak
The Young Lords Speak will be available in hardcover, ebook, and paperback formats beginning March 17, 2026, via Haymarket on Bookshop.org, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and independent bookstores nationwide.
Stories are one of the most powerful ways communities hold on to memory, make sense of struggle, and imagine freedom. My work as a writer, creative, and scholar grows from this belief. I am drawn to the ways Latinx and Afro-Caribbean communities in the United States and the Americas use art, performance, and everyday creativity to push back against erasure and inequality. Culture is never only about the past; it is a living force that sustains dignity and belonging in the present. To write, teach, and curate in this space is to witness the resilience and imagination that continue to shape our worlds. What matters to me is not only preserving stories, but creating spaces that inspire new struggles, new solidarities, and new futures.
Jacqui
