Skip to main content

Charles Thompson

Professor of the Practice Emeritus of Cultural Anthropology
Cultural Anthropology
Box 90802, Durham, NC 27708-0802
1317 W Pettigrew St, Durham, NC 27705

Overview


My research is centered on critical food studies at the nexus where food justice and immigration meet, with particular linkages to Latin America and the U.S. South.  I am a filmmaker, photographer, oral historian, and writer.   My projects (both completed and current) address such topics as immigration, farmworkers, the US/Mexico border, the US South and its agricultural history, farm foreclosures, and food access.  For more about my work, please see my website: cdthomps.com.  

My latest book, B…

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor of the Practice Emeritus of Cultural Anthropology · 2024 - Present Cultural Anthropology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

In the News


Published November 8, 2021
10 Duke-Authored Memoirs Have Stories to Tell
Published July 19, 2021
11 Duke-Authored Books on Global Perspectives
Published May 26, 2021
Rock Castle Home: A Disappearing Appalachian Community Shares Its Stories

View All News

Recent Publications


Border Odyssey Travels Along the U.S./Mexico Divide

Book · April 15, 2015 But his book Travels with Charley, a tale of his cross-country trip with his dog, is the one that most helped me understand my odyssey. He went on his journey, he said, because he felt distant from this country. Though he had worked as a ... ... Cite

Guestworkers: Farmworkers, filmmakers, and their obligations in the field

Chapter · 2013 As fieldworkers-in this case, those who go to communities asking for the favors of interviews, images, and film footage-we often find ourselves caught in a complex web of promises, obligations, and gifts. Receiving the gifts of interviews often requires so ... Cite

Guestworkers: Farmworkers, filmmakers, and their obligations in the field

Chapter · January 1, 2013 As fieldworkers-in this case, those who go to communities asking for the favors of interviews, images, and film footage-we often find ourselves caught in a complex web of promises, obligations, and gifts. Receiving the gifts of interviews often requires so ... Cite
View All Publications

Recent Grants


Curriculum and Education Director

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation · 2011 - 2012

"Brother Town/Pueblos Hermanos", A Documentary

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation · 2008 - 2009

Pueblos Hermanos/Brother Towns

Public ServicePrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation · 2007 - 2008

View All Grants

Education, Training & Certifications


University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · 1998 Ph.D.
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · 1994 M.A.
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University · 1984 M.S.
Emory & Henry College · 1979 B.A.