Help Marisela Heal and Empower Her Community

Hello, my name is Marisela, and I am raising funds to cover my tuition as I start my Liberatory Coaching certification!

I am a 27-year-old community organizer who has fought for my communities for over 12 years. I had the honor of growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, with my immigrant parents. I was moved to take action to protect my family after growing up hearing anti-immigrant sentiment from politicians who passed laws that directly impacted my family. In middle school, ICE raided my house to deport my grandmother's husband. This experience left me feeling powerless and terrified that squads of armed men could bust into my home at any moment. When a new friend approached me in high school to volunteer against Maricopa County's racist sheriff, I knew instantly that I had to take action. I've since spent half of my life knocking on doors, learning to organize, and finding my voice as a leader.

Part of that search has been my gender transition over the last 7 years. While I always knew that I was a little bit different, my transition unearthed deep feelings and fears that I had pushed away as a child out of fear of being disowned. In 2018, I gained the courage to invite my parents to join me on this journey. Although this was one of the scariest conversations I had to have in my entire life, the relationships that have since blossomed were entirely worth it. Organizing taught me how to speak truth to power, while my transition taught me how to speak truth to myself and those I love.

Now, this journey of organizing and transformation has brought me to a path of becoming a healer. Since moving to San Francisco, I have found the space and community to grow into a new and higher self. My current dream and vision of myself is knowing how to mend the battle wounds that are cut while fighting for our communities. As a youth organizer, I see how this moment is causing students pain, fear, and loss. These are feelings that I ignored in past versions of myself that made it harder to keep the movement going. Becoming a Liberatory Coach would catalyse my self-transformation and give me the tools to foster that healing and liberation for my people. I see how important it is that our communities work together to defend against fascism, and I hope my new healing and spiritual education can guide us to not lose ourselves in this battle. This opportunity is an invitation for me to return home to myself, and I now understand that part of my life's mission is helping others get home too.

You can learn more about my program and the work that I do at the following links:

Coaching for Healing Justice and Liberation

San Francisco Rising