During the talk, students impressed Professor Valdés with thoughtful questions and insights about her work and its connection to their curriculum. The topic of conversation ranged from the role of bibliophiles like Arturo Schomburg in the curation of the 135th St. and Fisk University collections of artifacts from the African diaspora, Schomburg's role as a mentor to many of the figures of the Harlem Renaissance and New Negro Movement, the nuances of Afro-Latinx and Nuyorican identity, and the liberatory potential of the archive.

Dr. Valdés’s research interests focus on the cultural production of Black peoples throughout the Americas: the United States and Latin America, including Brazil and the Caribbean. She is also the editor of The Future Is Now: A New Look at African Diaspora Studies (2012) and Let Spirit Speak! Cultural Journeys through the African Diaspora (2012) and the author of Oshun's Daughters: The Search for Womanhood in the Americas (2014).