On May 6th 2018, after a traumatizing incident in front of my house, my prosthetic dental bridge broke, leaving my jaw without any long-term support. As an undocumented queer broke femme without insurance, I knew I could not afford to replace it immediately. Now, a year later, I have no other choice.
Without a dental bridge, my jaw has been slowly shifting towards itself. After visiting a dentist last month, I was advised to see a jaw specialist and an oral surgeon. Not only do I need to undergo surgery for dental implants, i might also need additional work done inside my jaw, as well as physical therapy.
As a formerly homeless community organizer, I have spent the last decade dedicating my time, heart, and full self to the movement. As an abolitionist, I have composed essays and published articles on radical migrant praxis for Everyday Feminism, The Body Is Not An Apology, and Black Rose Anarchist Federation. As a visual artist, I continue to make space and show up for other marginalized folx in my community, via fundraising efforts, local events, and propaganda. From spending months at the Standing Rock reservation providing onsite media support, to hosting workshops and skillshares at over a dozen cities across the country, I have always tried to carry my work, in the way that it carries me: softly but sternly.
This work to me is important, and I take it very seriously. It is what keeps me going, through it all, he gives me purpose, what gives me answers when it all seems hopeless.
I was born to a quechua-hablante family of mixed-income status in Lima, Peru. As a child, I was diagnosed with chronic bronchitis, and spent the first five years of my life in an out of clinics. This was a big part in the decision making that led me to migrate to the United States, at the age of twelve. Other factors included financial difficulties, and my father’s decision to separate me from my mother.
After migrating to Utah, I spent the last part of my childhood living in a violent household, where I was often threatened and kept in isolation. At the age of sixteen, I was in a car accident that broke my teeth in several places. The duress from this incident only led to more financial difficulties from costly medical bills, and more abuse in my home, forcing me to run away at the age of nineteen . While living on the streets I witnessed firsthand the treatment young migrants without homes face everywhere, and decided that i would dedicate my life to making as much change as I could. On 2013, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program allowed me to get out of the streets and find support and employment, by granting me a work permit.
I was twenty-three years old when I was finally able to autonomously begin striving forward towards a life without abuse, now at twenty-nine, I need your support.
I am a community organizer and an artist through this trauma, drawing from the complex experiences in my story, and my own history of survival. My work is centered on concepts of mutual-aid, indigenous sovereignty, education, and community empowerment, thru the lens of transformative justice. I am committed to our collective liberation, and to our collective wellness, and the money I raise will go directly towards much needed healing, my medical bills, and towards allowing me to survive and get well, and find support and stability.
This includes:
1) Surgery: Medical expenses, and medication.
2) Therapy: Ongoing trauma counseling, and physical therapy.
3) Living expenses: Transportation, and time off work.
4) Emergency funds: Immigration legal fees, and such.
I am both optimistic and pessimistic, but mostly grateful to the movement that shaped me, and to all who have shown up in support, love, and solidarity.
Without a dental bridge, my jaw has been slowly shifting towards itself. After visiting a dentist last month, I was advised to see a jaw specialist and an oral surgeon. Not only do I need to undergo surgery for dental implants, i might also need additional work done inside my jaw, as well as physical therapy.
As a formerly homeless community organizer, I have spent the last decade dedicating my time, heart, and full self to the movement. As an abolitionist, I have composed essays and published articles on radical migrant praxis for Everyday Feminism, The Body Is Not An Apology, and Black Rose Anarchist Federation. As a visual artist, I continue to make space and show up for other marginalized folx in my community, via fundraising efforts, local events, and propaganda. From spending months at the Standing Rock reservation providing onsite media support, to hosting workshops and skillshares at over a dozen cities across the country, I have always tried to carry my work, in the way that it carries me: softly but sternly.
This work to me is important, and I take it very seriously. It is what keeps me going, through it all, he gives me purpose, what gives me answers when it all seems hopeless.
I was born to a quechua-hablante family of mixed-income status in Lima, Peru. As a child, I was diagnosed with chronic bronchitis, and spent the first five years of my life in an out of clinics. This was a big part in the decision making that led me to migrate to the United States, at the age of twelve. Other factors included financial difficulties, and my father’s decision to separate me from my mother.
After migrating to Utah, I spent the last part of my childhood living in a violent household, where I was often threatened and kept in isolation. At the age of sixteen, I was in a car accident that broke my teeth in several places. The duress from this incident only led to more financial difficulties from costly medical bills, and more abuse in my home, forcing me to run away at the age of nineteen . While living on the streets I witnessed firsthand the treatment young migrants without homes face everywhere, and decided that i would dedicate my life to making as much change as I could. On 2013, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program allowed me to get out of the streets and find support and employment, by granting me a work permit.
I was twenty-three years old when I was finally able to autonomously begin striving forward towards a life without abuse, now at twenty-nine, I need your support.
I am a community organizer and an artist through this trauma, drawing from the complex experiences in my story, and my own history of survival. My work is centered on concepts of mutual-aid, indigenous sovereignty, education, and community empowerment, thru the lens of transformative justice. I am committed to our collective liberation, and to our collective wellness, and the money I raise will go directly towards much needed healing, my medical bills, and towards allowing me to survive and get well, and find support and stability.
This includes:
1) Surgery: Medical expenses, and medication.
2) Therapy: Ongoing trauma counseling, and physical therapy.
3) Living expenses: Transportation, and time off work.
4) Emergency funds: Immigration legal fees, and such.
I am both optimistic and pessimistic, but mostly grateful to the movement that shaped me, and to all who have shown up in support, love, and solidarity.
Organizer
Mariella Mendoza Cardenas
Organizer
Salt Lake City, UT