George Francis-Kelly

I am a historian of race, space, and social movements in the modern United States. My research examines the interconnections between geography and social history, illustrating how race and the built environment are mutually constitutive and can dramatically reshape forms of protest.

African American history, Social History, Protest, Race and the Built Environment, Architecture.

2016-2020      PhD, History, University of Leeds
Thesis: ‘Right to the Metropolis?: Black and Latinx Struggles for Spatial Justice in Los Angeles, 1985-1993’

2014-2015       MA, American History, University of Sheffield, Distinction
Dissertation: “Wake up and Smell the Coffee, Los Angeles!”: Grassroots Activism in Los Angeles, 1985-1993

2011-2014       BA, History, University of Sheffield, First Class Degree

2022-2025: Post-Doctoral Researcher, School of Art History and Cultural Policy, University College Dublin
Funding Project: ‘Expanding Agency: Women, Race, and the Global Dissemination of Modern Architecture’ (European Research Council Horizon 2020 Advanced Grant, Number 101019419)
Research Project: The Architecture of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, 1920-1970

I have previously taught at the University of Sheffield, University of Leeds, and University of Aberdeen. I have specialised in designing modules examining topics of race, protest and social movements, and urban history. I have also led or supported courses examining a broad range of topics in US, European, Global, and Public History.