Students
Lili Barajas (they/them) is a South Central born and raised undergraduate student activist and organizer at CSU Long Beach. Lili’s living experience with redlining, gentrification, and over-policing raised their interest in social political justice. Because of these experiences, Lili is a committed intersectional and decolonial feminist. Their standpoint and interests led them to major in Sociology and minor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, alongside becoming a member and organizer for LA F.U.E.R.Z.A on campus. In addition to this, they serve as student council president for the Latine Student Union.
Jenniffer Chhai, a full-time student at California State University, Long Beach, is pursuing a bachelor's in psychology with a minor in Asian American Studies. In addition to excelling academically, she holds a leadership role as a shift lead and mentors first-generation college students. Committed to community engagement, Jenniffer is actively involved in Khmer Girls in Action, learning to manage programs, and serves as Co-President of CSULB's Cambodian Student Society, promoting cultural awareness and unity.
Jennifer Chavez is a 3rd year Sociology Major at California State University, Long Beach. She is deeply committed to exploring the intersections of gender, race and class through an Abolitionist framework. She is a student activist organizing with multiple different organizations such as La F.U.E.R.Z.A, Students for Quality Education, and the Sociology Student Association. She is also a research assistant on Budget and Policing in Long Beach and CSULB. She is interested in understanding K-12 education and its relation to the school-to-prison pipeline. After graduation she hopes to attend graduate school to become a School Counselor.
Maria De La Cruz (bio and photo not provided)
Diana Maria Deras is a native San Franciscan. She is a full-time student & senior in the Women’s Gender and Sexuality studies department at California State University, Long Beach. She is a stroke survivor and was a peer mentor for fellow stroke survivors at Davies Sutter Health Stroke Rehabilitation Center in San Francisco for a few years. A strong advocate of persons with disabilities, Sex work and the LGBTQ+ community; She is also daughter of parents who were heavily involved in the El Salvadoran war of the 1980’s and hoping to work with sexual violence survivors upon completion of her studies.
Darya Jafarinejad is a sophomore at California State University, Long Beach, where she is pursuing a degree in Creative Writing with a minor in Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies. She enjoys studying dystopian and fantasy literature, and intersectional and transnational feminism. Specifically, how they reflect, influence, and are influenced by historical and contemporary social justice movements and grassroots organizations. Her interest in these areas stems from her passion for using writing and literature to bolster underrepresented voices and cultures. After graduation, she plans to apply to graduate school to continue learning as much as she can.
Xochitl Jimenez (she/they) is a postgraduate student and an alumna of California State University, Long Beach. Currently, they are pursuing their Social Science teaching credential, aspiring to teach history at the high school level. Holding a bachelor's degree in history, with an emphasis on Latin American and U.S. history, Xochitl blends her intellectual interests with a dedication to activism, working towards educating and giving back to her community. She actively engages in mobilizing efforts concerning issues impacting students of color through her involvement with La FUERZA Student Association and Students for Quality Education.
Daniela Lara (she/her) is a graduating senior majoring in Sociology. She has been organizing around issues affecting working-class students of color with La FUERZA Student Association and Students for Quality Education since 2019 and is currently on the board for the Sociology Student Association. Daniela is also currently a Research Assistant studying the effects of policing on communities of color in Long Beach. After graduation, she intends to pursue a career as a high school history teacher while also furthering her efforts in mobilizing and building solidarity within her community.
Toria Love is a first-generation college student at California State University, Long Beach, majoring in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) with a minor in film. Her passion for film and media blossomed in high school and has since become her primary mode of self-expression. At her current job at Heart and Soul Productions, she gains invaluable hands-on experience daily, blending her major and minor to pave her way in the film industry. Toria aspires to immerse herself in every facet of the production process, drawing inspiration from her roots in Compton.
Kaitlyn Phan (she/her) is a 2nd year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Asian American Studies at CSULB. She recently finished an internship with Viet Rainbow of Orange County, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting LGBTQ+ individuals with a focus towards the queer Vietnamese community. Her values are deeply rooted in disability justice with guiding principles of antiracism informed by gender and queer theory. As a Vietnamese American, she believes in the end of all colonialist and imperialist empires. In her daily life, she practices Covid safety precautions and loves to read, sing, and dance.
Cameron Rodriguez is a senior student at California State University, Long Beach, studying communications. Rodriguez works in transnational feminism with multiple campus organizations and coalitions such as SATH (Students Against Tuition Hikes) and OHSO (Organization For Historically Oppressed Students), fighting for student representation and rights within the CSU. Within the community, Rodriguez works with UFCW (United Food and Commercial Workers), to fight for workers rights within Orange County.
Daniel Timberlake is a fourth-year student attending California State University, Long Beach. They are majoring in Religious Studies with a minor in Queer Studies and will be graduating this semester, Spring 2024. Their research and learning interests include ancient Near-Eastern religion, Buddhism, queer religion, women and spirituality, and transnational feminisms. Timberlake assisted in the founding of a weekly meeting at their local church that acts as an open forum for non/religious queers to discuss the interplays of queerness and spirituality. This meeting is coming up on its 1st year anniversary in April 2024.
