Jessica Schwartz's Academic Duty in Punk Music Culture

Jessica Schwartz's Academic Duty in Punk Music Culture

In the heart of the Pacific, the Marshall Islands continue to bear the scars of a dark chapter in history - the nuclear tests conducted by the United States during the 1950s. Jessica Schwartz, an assistant professor of musicology at UCLA, has dedicated her research to uncovering the profound impacts these tests had on the health and livelihood of the local population.

Schwartz relocated to the Marshall Islands for two years to conduct research that became her dissertation, "Resonances of the Atomic Age: Hearing the Nuclear Legacy in the United States and the Marshall Islands, 1945-2010." Her work reveals the devastating consequences of the nuclear tests, including exposure to high levels of radiation, forced displacement, cultural dislocation, and long-term health consequences such as increased cancer rates and birth defects.

One of the most devastating tests, Castle Bravo, was detonated on March 1, 1954, on Bikini Atoll. The radioactive fallout contaminated inhabited atolls like Bikini and Enewetak, exposing residents to dangerous doses of radiation. Many Rongelapese people developed thyroid gland disorders or cancer and required thyroid surgery. Despite these harms, affected Marshall Islanders have faced insufficient recognition or adequate reparations and have struggled with exclusion from full health care coverage such as Medicaid from the U.S.

Schwartz's work underscores that the U.S. nuclear testing program in the Marshall Islands was not only a military and scientific episode but also a lasting human and environmental tragedy with enduring impacts on the health, community, and sovereignty of the Marshallese people.

In her teaching, Schwartz applies a socially informed pedagogy. She currently teaches Music History 13: Punk, a new addition to UCLA's curriculum. Her course emphasizes the relationship between creative expressivity and social justice, a theme that resonates with her research.

Schwartz's personal life is intertwined with her research. She is a longtime guitar player and a member of the L.A.-based queercore noisepunk band Trap Girl. Her songs address contemporary social issues such as safe sex practices and violence against transgender people.

Schwartz's research also extends to Marshallese folk songs, which address the detonation of Castle Bravo and its aftermath, including their exile from their homeland and the medical tests they have endured at the hands of U.S. doctors.

In 2013, Schwartz co-founded the Marshallese Education Initiative, a nonprofit organization aiming to increase knowledge of the Marshallese people and create educational and vocational opportunities for them. The initiative focuses on many of the same issues Schwartz explores in her research, emphasizing the importance of education in addressing the ongoing impacts of the nuclear tests.

For Schwartz, research does not necessarily have to lead to advocacy to have value, but she sees value in using research for creative outreach efforts. Her collection of zines, books, records, and correspondence related to punk music is a testament to this belief.

In a world where the echoes of the Atomic Age still resonate, Schwartz's work serves as a reminder of the human cost of nuclear tests and the ongoing struggle for justice and recognition for the Marshallese people.

References:

1. Gomez, I., & Herman, J. (2015). The Nuclear Age and the Marshall Islands: A History of the Atomic Tests and Their Aftermath. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
2. Schwartz, J. (2016). Resonances of the Atomic Age: Hearing the Nuclear Legacy in the United States and the Marshall Islands, 1945-2010. (Doctoral Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles).
3. United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. (2013). Sources and effects of radiation exposure in the Marshall Islands. United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation.
4. United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. (2015). Marshall Islands: A Chronology of U.S. Nuclear Tests and Their Aftermath. United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
5. Jessica Schwartz, in her role as a musicology professor, teaches a course that connects creative expressivity with social justice, such as her course "Music History 13: Punk," which explores the relationship between music and issues like safety and equity.
6. In addition to her research, Schwartz co-founded the Marshallese Education Initiative, an organization that provides education and vocational opportunities for the Marshallese people, emphasizing the importance of education in addressing the ongoing effects of nuclear tests and fostering self-development.

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