Between Home and the Elite Institution: Music's Role in Constructing and Navigating Latine Identity, Belonging, and Comunidad at Stanford University

Abstract

This thesis examines the ways in which Latine students navigate and reinforce racial and ethnic identity through music selection in community and private spaces at Stanford University, a predominantly white institution (PWI). In this thesis, community spaces are understood as Latine-centered spaces on campus, including formally designated physical spaces and student-constructed spaces created through Latine student-run organizations. Private spaces refer to spaces in which personal listening habits occur, such as dorm rooms and the use of headphones. Through eight semi-structured interviews with self-identifying Latine students on campus, this thesis reveals multiple themes surrounding the ways in which identity, language, and music come to be intertwined. Drawing from these narratives and accounts, I argue that by recognizing the intertwining nature of the Spanish language and Latinidad, we can understand how engagement with music, particularly Spanish-language music, functions as a powerful site through which Latine students negotiate identity, cultivate a sense of belonging, and not simply persist at this institution but nurture the flourishing joys of comunidad at Stanford.

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