João Marcelo de Oliveira Cezar is a researcher and professor, currently pursuing a PhD in History at Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) and holding an MA in Social History from Universidade de São Paulo (USP). He graduated in History from UNESP, with part of his training completed at Universidad Nacional de Cuyo (Argentina), where he also took courses in Anthropology, Sociology and Philosophy.
His academic career is marked by the investigation of themes related to Theory and Philosophy of History, Conceptual History, Decolonial Studies, Racial Studies, Intellectual History, Feminist Studies, and Queer Theory, engaging with authors such as Michel Foucault, Achille Mbembe, and Judith Butler. His research has been funded by institutions like PIBIC/CNPq, FAPESP and PRCEU-USP.
Currently, he is developing the doctoral project “Biopoder/Necropolítica ou Necrobiopoder: leituras e releituras dos conceitos de Foucault e Mbembe no Brasil pré-pandêmico e pandêmico (2018–2021)”, focusing on contemporary reconfigurations of these concepts in the Brazilian academic environment. During his master’s degree, he investigated changes and continuities in Foucault’s concept of biopower through Achille Mbembe’s work.
His research also covers topics such as gender-based violence and sexuality, biopolitics and necropolitics, performativity, resistance, and decoloniality. His career combines theoretical research, educational practice, and social engagement, always aimed at understanding and challenging contemporary forms of power, violence, resistance, and the production of subjectivities.