Writing

Crip Ecologies: Complicate the Conversation to Reclaim Power

Poetry 2022

Crip ecologies describe the messy, diverse, and profoundly beautiful ecosystems which exist for disabled people. It is impossible to fit ourselves to a mold that nondisabled people adhere to, which allows capitalism (making money and paying money to live) to flourish, borders to be maintained, and uniform solutions to address some of our most pressing and urgent problems like climate change. Crip ecologies are living, breathing spaces of conflict and creativity.

 

To Dance With Our DNA

Geez Magazine, Spring 2021 issue

I came to doing ancestral work not because I had access to information through websites or even family stories, but because I felt responsibility to legacies that live on in my body. I am aware that violence got me here as much as love. Ancestral work is an invitation to the in-between.

Text and Audio version available.

 

Yes, Disability Is A Culture

BorderLore, Heritage & Culture of the U.S. Southwest and Northern Mexico 2022

A foundational element of ableism is a fear of vulnerability. For many people, to celebrate something which encompasses discomfort is incredibly difficult. Nondisabled people mostly relate to disability as something to be ashamed of or inspired by. Both perspectives contribute to disabled people not being seen as part of community and instead, as an exception to it. For disabled people all over the world, celebrating disability culture is a key component of our survival.

 

How Many People Have Prayed for You?

BorderLore, Heritage & Culture of the U.S. Southwest and Northern Mexico 2022

Naomi Ortiz and Alisha Vasquez talk about disability culture, accessibility, and finding liberation.

 
 
 

Surviving in the Liars’ Sandstorm

Part 1 in the “Self-Care in the Time of Liars” Series

 

Transforming Lies Into Resistance

Part 2 in the “Self-Care in the Time of Liars” Series

 
 

Writing For Activists Who Don’t Fit In

Blog for Reclamation Press on writing the book, Sustaining Spirit: Self-Care for Social Justice

 

We Exist In Darkness (Living at the Intersections)

Intersectionality is described as the location where all of our multiple identities intersect. However, my identities are not straight lines, which only intersect in one place. For me, intersectionality is more like living in multiple worlds at once. Intersectionality is like a woven basket. Pieces of me are woven together holding my experiences in the world, my soul. This basket holds the essence of me, but is something that others cannot see. How can someone understand the intricacies of being a Mestiza, Disabled, poor, woman, mystic shape-shifter, who was born and has lived in the borderlands? I, who exist inside this woven basket, am always on the continuing journey to understand each piece and what it means when they are fit together….

 

Disability, Disability Justice & Shared Values with Prevention

Volume 1, Issue 3: This issue of the Catalyst Connections provides insights and recommendations for advancing domestic and sexual violence prevention efforts through disability justices from the peer learning discussion hosted by TC-TAT via teleconference in December 2011. Peer learning participants included: Naomi Ortiz, Freelance Consultant specializing in disability justice; Marsha Saxton, World Institute on Disability; Sarah Triano, Silicon Valley Independent Living Center.