Hello everyone!
For those that know me, you're probably not surprised that I began this kind of blog to start conversations about certain controversial topics that need to be talked about due to their prevalence in today's age - especially among college campuses and with a President who grabs "them by the pussy". If you do know me and are reading this post, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to see what the intention of this blog is for and (I hope) supporting me in this new endeavor I've embarked on. If you do know me but are reading this post with the thought of "ugh Stephanie, give it a rest and stop talking & voicing your opinion on sensitive things that not everyone pays attention to or agrees with", I'd still like to thank you for reading this post and hope that through this blog, we can start healthy and respectful conversations about these topics you may not fully understand or believe to be "overdramatized".
ABOUT ME:
For those who don't know me or don't know me that well, I'm Stephanie - an undergraduate pursing my Bachelors of Science in Psychology with a minor in Biology. I was born and raised in Texas and am a proud product of a Native American and Mexican-American who takes cultural pride in both ethnicities. However, I am more in touch with my Native American side and have been actively involved in my tribe since the day I was born.
Since I was around 12 years old, I've been interested in the health of American Indians and Alaska Natives in Indian Country. At 13 year olds, I was involved with a small group in my Tribal community called "Teens Against Commercial Tobacco (Teens ACT)" that was ran by my tribe's Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program. Through this group, I gained knowledge on commercial tobacco and the dangers that accompany it through short seminars that helped better educate me and expand my knowledge on the negative effects of tobacco. A year later, I began working with a representative of my tribe's Health and Human Services Department and was fortunate enough to attend the annual Say What! Texas Tobacco-Free Conference in the summer of 2011. This was a truly amazing experience as I was the youngest of a tribal youth group that promoted the dangers and negative effects of commercial tobacco. I continuously worked with the Health and Human Services representative of my tribe on informing tribal members on the harmful effects of tobacco use up until I turned 16. After my journey of educating myself on the social and physical problems associated with tobacco came to an end, I took on the initiative of informing younger generations on these issues. I knew that this particular issue was important within the youth of my tribe because of the stereotypical but real pressures they face with drug and alcohol consumption and addiction.
After working to promote the dangers of and information on commercial tobacco, I became a part of a safe-sex panel in 2012 under the request of another Health & Human Services representative from my tribe. This panel was based on a Latino curriculum titled Cuidate!. This curriculum focused on sex education to prevent unwanted pregnancies and Sexually Transmitted Diseases with the intention of not promoting abstinence but promoting safe sex practices. I attended classes and completed the modules necessary under this curriculum to become a part of this safe-sex panel. This panel was aimed to educate the tribe's youth about STD's and protected sex where I was one of the first teenage girls to sit on a panel that educates my generation on safe sex and the prevention of STD's.
Since then, I've been involved in many initiatives, projects, and health boards that promote the health of American Indians and Alaska Natives - not only on a local level (within my tribe and tribal region) but on a national level.
In 2015, I began working as a Native American Research Centers for Health (NARCH) Field Coordinator on a research project titled "Tribal Solutions for Native Youth Affected by Adverse Childhood Experiences" - a grant under the National Institute of General Medicine Sciences (NIGMS) and through the Albuquerque Area Indian Health Board (AAIHB), the Southwest Tribal NARCH, and the Department of Family & Community Medicine at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. This project focused on "personal and cultural strengths" of Native children, families, and communities to develop and conduct a "culturally-appropiate toolkit" to help create families of great health and happiness within my Tribal community. This "toolkit" is aimed to improve the health and well-being of Native American youth who have been affected by Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Through this project, I conducted both youth and adult focus groups to get their opinions which have helped create the culturally-appropiate toolkit and am proud to say I am now finalizing this particular toolkit. - This project and means of employment was the reason I decided to pursue an education in Psychology with Biology.
In the Fall of 2016, I became a Youth Ambassador for an online health resource titled "We R Native" which aims to promote health and safe health practices among Tribal youth in Indian Country. Through my ambassadorship, I created a health educational event titled "Native Youth for Native Health" for both Native youth and Native adults to educate them on health disparities, issues, and risk behaviors. At this event, I educated the Native Youth with the safe-sex curriculum I mentioned earlier on the dangers of unprotected sex and STDs such as HIV.
In the Spring of 2017, I became an Advisory Member for the first ever National Indian Health Board (NIHB) Tribal Youth Health Advisory Board (TYHAB). The purpose of the advisory board was to be the representation of Tribal governments and actively work with 23 other Tribal members from various tribes and the NIHB as an advocate and advisor for Native Youth (ages 12-24 years old) and their health on a local and national level. Through this fellowship, I've provided feedback to the NIHB for my respective region (Albuquerque), have worked proactively on creating resolutions regarding health for Native youth (two resolutions which are currently being considered in Congress), and worked on the local level with federally recognized tribes to resolve health issues at the national level. I'm currently in the process of wrapping up my fellowship by writing a policy paper on the opioid epidemic in the United States, Indian Country, and my Tribal community.
Upon beginning my undergraduate term in the Fall of 2015, I've been actively involved on my college campus. I joined a Panhellenic sorority where I've held many leadership positions in and am now the President of. I've been a Vice President of an organization that empowers women and helps them become a better version of themselves and was a Senator-at-Large for my University's Student Government Association (SGA).
As a Senator-at-Large, I represented and voiced the opinions, concerns, and issues of 1,000 students at my University. I created and moderated special projects that were beneficial to my University's student body, discussed and voted on manners pertaining to the University's community, reached consensus on solutions, represented the University at both the local and national level, and co-authored and represented a University resolution to recognize Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples Day.
My greatest accomplishment as a Senator-at-Large were two events I hosted and moderated: one for Dating Violence Awareness Month and another for Sexual Assault Awareness Month. In both events, which focused on both sexes, the topics of healthy relationships, consent, communication, and overall awareness were highly emphasized and discussed.
In February of 2017, I hosted a "Love Is..." Film and Discussion with my University's Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution. This event focused on a film and round table discussion that was on dating violence and unhealthy relationships. I, along with three other moderators, moderated the round table discussions that followed a screening of the One Love Foundation's "Escalation" to discuss dating violence, the warning signs of it in an unhealthy relationship, and how one can prevent it from escalating or avoid it.
In April of 2017, I hosted another event with the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution that promoted, openly discussed, and openly addressed sexual assault awareness on college campuses. "The Hunting Ground" documentary was screened to University students and was followed by a panel discussion with credible University administrators to discuss sexual assault.
Since my term as a Senator-at-Large from 2016-2017, I've been an even grander advocate for sexual assault awareness, dating violence awareness, healthy relationships, consent, and all that this blog will entail.
WHY THE ADVOCACY AND PASSION?
When I was 16 years old, just a junior in high school, I entered my first relationship of nearly 2 years. Needless to say and without going into too much detail that disrespects the person involved, it was not a healthy relationship on both ends - in terms of communication, respect, empowerment, and loyalty.
Through this, I became interested and passionate about healthy relationships and domestic/dating violence awareness. I began working for a Department of Behavioral Health around this time and met a woman, who is now my mentor, who educated me on such topics.
As I entered college, stories of men and women being assaulted and/or harassed at their Universities arose and movements and advocacy on defying sexual assault, slut shaming, white privilege, and much more took flight.
As time went on, more cases, stories, news coverage, documentaries and bravery of those affected came out and turned dark to light with much more advocacy and EXTREME need for awareness and education heightening. Last Fall, an event occurred that has since forever shaped and severely increased my advocacy and passion for sexual assault awareness, and all topics this blog will focus on, & has empowered me to make a difference.
Too many of my fellow women and men are survivors of sexual assault, dating violence, unhealthy relationships, sexual harassment, feeling ashamed in their beautiful bodies, and fear. Too many friends and confidants, too little conversation surrounding it.
*I want to reassure those who have confided in me with such sensitive details and stories & are reading this blog post, your confidentiality will forever be my number one priority when discussing certain topics of conversation and for the rest of my life. I will never speak on your behalf or write blog posts about something you may have experienced as it is not my story to tell nor in my place to speak about. For those who have confided in me, you are the utmost bravest and strongest souls I have EVER met and are much more than I can ever be. You all inspire me and resonate this strength I don't even have. I love you all.
It is with all these events, and current events that come out on the daily, that have me passionate about these topics and advocate for them.
This blog is my start on a journey of further advocacy, awareness, and education. I will never disrespect any one's opinion or ridicule it. I will just participate in mature, respectful, and open-minded discussions that I hope will increase your knowledge on such topics.
Thank you.
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