A former restaurateur, chef, and TV producer, Dr. Careaga Coleman currently serves as a visiting professor in the Chicana Chicano Studies Department at the University of New Mexico where she also earned her Ph.D. in Spanish and Portuguese. Her research includes the study of Son Jarocho, Afromexican foodways as cultural retentions, and the legacy of Caribbean dance in Mexican culture. Her teaching includes courses on Afromexican literature, history, and culture, and her African Presence in Mexico course sits at the heart of UNM’s popular Conexiones Veracruz, study abroad program. Dr. Careaga Coleman is the author of La Cocina Afromestiza en Veracruz 1995 (co-authored with Raquel Torres Cerdán and republished in 2000 by el Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes); La Cuenca del Papaloapan (Calendario-Recetario) 1996, El Exótico Sabor de Veracruz 2000 and La Cocina Tradicional de Jalcomulco 2000.
Born in Tamiahua, an Afromexican community in Northern Veracruz, Dr. Careaga Coleman has dedicated most of her professional life to the study of Afromexican cuisine. She began her formal study of this subject while serving as an executive producer for Radiotelevisión de Veracruz in Xalapa, Veracruz where conducted extensive research regarding the history and culture of 12 Afromestizo communities in the state of Veracruz. It was during this work that she discovered the wealth of culture associated with the unique culinary arts found in these communities. Her current book project builds upon her existing work in Afromexican culinary traditions. In this book she uses the cultural retentions found in the Afromexican kitchen to establish an index for Afromexican culture and identity more broadly.
Dr. Careaga Coleman believes that this field of inquiry is especially useful to Afromexican communities in their decades long quest for national recognition. She is the Founder and Lead Advisor of Colectivo Afro-Tamiahua, a civil association established for the benefit of Afrodescendientes in Veracruz and other states in Mexico. She is currently working to establish Conexiones Africanas, a nonprofit organization that provides support and guidance for Civil Associations committed to addressing healthcare and educational disparities in the communities of African descent that comprise the African Diaspora. Dr. Careaga Coleman is married to Dr. Finnie D. Coleman, also of the University of New Mexico. They have two children, Anelé and Finnie, and live and work in Albuquerque New Mexico.
