I was born in Santa Marta Hospital in Boyle Heights. One of the most difficult moments in my life was when my single mom, three siblings and I were evicted from our home in the mid 80’s. Throughout my childhood my family experienced homelessness twice. I know first hand what it is like to struggle with housing issues and the uncertainty of obtaining affordable housing. For this reason and many other hardships that come along with being part of an immigrant family, I have been involved in social justice activism for most of my life. Affordable housing is a human rights issue and I want to do something about it!
I am currently an Associate Professor in the Intercollegiate Department of Chicana/o Latina/o Studies at Scripps/Claremont College. I am a Fulbright (2007-2008), Ford (2012-2013) and Woodrow Wilson Fellow (206-2017). My academic interests have been fueled by my own musicianship as a singer/songwriter and percussionist for Grammy Award (2013) winning band Quetzal. Quetzal has made considerable impact in the Los Angeles Chicano music scene. The relevance of Quetzal’s music and lyrics have been noted in a range of publications, from dissertations to scholarly books. My book Chican@ Artivistas: East Los Angeles Trenches, Transborder Tactics was just released on UT Austin Press. I currently live in El Sereno with my husband Quetzal Flores and 15 year old son Sandino.