Johanna Fernández Dies at 55: Leading Scholar on the Young Lords & Latinx Freedom Movement @DemocracyNow
Johanna Fernández Dies at 55: Leading Scholar on the Young Lords & Latinx Freedom Movement  @DemocracyNow
Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Support our work: democracynow.org/donate/sm-desc-yt

We look at the life and legacy of Dominican American historian, activist and prison abolitionist Dr. Johanna Fernández, who died on July 30 after a long battle with cancer. She was 55 years old. As a professor of history at Baruch College and the CUNY Graduate Center, Fernández was a leading scholar of the Young Lords, the radical 1960s civil rights organization founded in Chicago and New York and modeled on the Black Panthers. Fernández also created the Latinx Freedom Movement Archive and Exhibition Project, alongside historian Felipe Hinojosa. The exhibition is currently on view at The Shed in New York City, as well as in Chicago and Los Angeles. Iterations will also be presented in Houston and Washington, D.C.

Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs on over 1,500 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream at democracynow.org Mondays to Fridays 8-9 a.m. ET.

Subscribe to our Daily Email Digest: democracynow.org/subscribe
Johanna Fernández Dies at 55: Leading Scholar on the Young Lords & Latinx Freedom MovementTrump admin targets antiwar organization CodePinkMost Americans Are Getting Poorer: Robert Reich on Inequality & the Failures of Corporate DemsBernie Sanders on Jesse Jackson: One of the Most Significant Political Leaders of Last 100 YearsIve Been to the Mountaintop: In Final Speech, MLK Spoke of Reaching Promised Land of EqualityAI Superintelligence Is Not a Tool, Its an Adversary Threatening Humanity: ControlAIs Connor LeahyKids for Cash: Mother speaks out after Bidens clemency for corrupt judgeMop Up Michigan: Donavan McKinney on Democratic Socialism, Corporate Money & His Primary UpsetWhats Behind Trumps Christmas Strikes on Nigeria? Anti-Christian Genocide or Appeasing MAGA Base?Fire in Every Direction: Palestinian Author Tareq Baconi on Gaza, Zionism & Embracing QueernessShut Down Dilley: Rep. Joaquin Castro on Abusive ICE Family Jail, Targeting of Military FamiliesTop U.S. & World Headlines — August 26, 2026
Democracy Now! |

Johanna Fernández Dies at 55: Leading Scholar on the Young Lords & Latinx Freedom Movement

SHARE TO X SHARE TO REDDIT SHARE TO FACEBOOK WALLPAPER