People leave a mark in our lives that will forever stay with us; this essay is a love letter to everyone that has influenced me and put me on the path I am now traveling.
The Lifelong Gift
Our America: Stories of Protest Patriotism
Broken Masterpiece
A poetic piece revolving around the misconstrued perceptions of what it truly means to be an African American living in modern day society.
Patriarchal Pledge
I wrote this to show the patriarchal practices of saying the Pledge of Allegiance and what it truly means to stand for the flag, from the perspective of an American and an immigrant.
Changing Our Voting System For The Future Vote
The hybrid of the plurality and majority rule created the electoral system in America. The limited authenticity votes can be regained with a scoring system.
American Mothers
‘American Mothers’ is a graphic novel that explores the duality of our identities as hyphenated Americans through the stories of our mothers.
In Search of An America Boy
This piece is about patriarchal ideals within my culture and the way they have affected the women in my family.
Protesting For Change
How have protests and movements evolved and stayed the same over decades? We discuss our experiences at a women’s march and climate strike and how generations are connected in fighting for social justice.
America and Its Glory
This piece is about America and how it’s affected my family and others. It may come off strong, but don’t panic, it’s just my thoughts. Thank you.
My Mother’s Allegiance
My Mother’s Allegiance focuses on the essential factors that encouraged my mother to flee to America, and the assimilation and racism often present in the experiences of an immigrant.
Translating
I have experienced translation as a fundamental phenomenon in my communication. I feel colonization living in my words.
Cracks in the Country
Amanda Gorman’s poem at the 2021 Inauguration inspired me to write my own piece about America’s values and ideals.
Erasures of ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ & ‘Lift Every Voice’
These pieces are erasures of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the national black anthem. My mentor gave me prompts to erase both of them, side by side, after noticing the differences between them.
Armed Allegiance
My erasure poem “Armed Allegiance” represents the immigrant experience. I moved from Mexico to America when I was young, and I know how hard it is to adapt to a new place. The Naturalization Oath is important to me because it reflects the sacrifices my parents made to give me more opportunities in life. I know many undocumented immigrants dream of becoming U.S. citizens and see it as the ultimate achievement. I also wanted this poem to convey how important it is for me to make my parents proud and show them that their hard work was worth it.
Asian American
This poem is an exercise in claiming my place in history—as a member of a community but also as an individual. It explores some thoughts I frequently have about my Asian-American identity and living in New York.
The Perfect American
The Perfect American tells the stories of immigrants detained by ICE. Every episode is centered around a different detainee. Each with a different story, a different perspective, and a different relationship with America. In this country, where not everyone qualifies as American, these people deserve a chance to be heard. A chance to prove themselves, to show who they are outside of what the media spews about them. These are the Perfect Americans, the people who strive to be a part of a nation that doesn’t want them.