As an artist with a platform, it’s my duty to stand for issues and causes I believe in. As a business owner, you deserve to understand the core values and ethics that drive my business before you make a purchase from me.

As a customer or supporter of mine, you don’t have the right to demand my work adheres to your ideology.

Who I Am

I’m an Iranian-Mexican-Citizen Potawatomi Nation woman. I’m an intersectional feminist, and I acknowledge that the various identities that belong to us can often compound the oppression we experience. This understanding shapes the work I do and how I work with students in my programs and how I write fiction.

I also acknowledge that the patriarchy (white supremacy, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, ageism, ableism, racism, colorism, and Christian supremacy) are baked into governmental, religious, and academic institutional structures, so many artists and creatives don’t have access to the resources they need in order to do the work they are born to do.

I am dedicated to building a more just and equitable world.

What I Believe

I believe privilege is an opportunity for hard work. So while I have benefited from many privileges in my life, those privileges have led me to opportunities for very hard work that I wouldn’t have had access to without those privileges. It’s ignorant to dismiss your privilege by stating you still worked hard, when everyone works hard, but not everyone has access to the same quality of hard work. Not all hard work enables financial stability and the opportunity for generational wealth. Not all work, no matter how necessary, is valued on a societal level.

I believe abortion is necessary and compassionate healthcare. I believe it’s ableist to assume all women can carry a pregnancy to term. I believe it’s oppressive to force women to give birth in a country with no socialized healthcare or mandatory maternity leave.

I believe black lives matter. I am committed to being inclusive and anti-racist. I believe the systems that drive the United States are fundamentally racist and I’m dedicated to dismantling those systems of oppression.

I believe racism and xenophobia have no place in this world and we are all obligated to call it out when we see it, and put a stop to it.

I believe rights for 2SLGBTQIA+ are fundamental human rights.

I believe every missing or murdered indigenous woman should be brought home, and those responsible should be brought to justice.

I believe labor unions are a necessary and vital force in the fight against oppressive employers.

I believe abstaining from voting is consenting to oppression. You can find out how to register to vote in the United States here.