Emily Nash
This interview is with Emily Nash, a case manager and aspiring social worker in Austin. Emily reflects on her upbringing, including growing up lower class and the influences that caused her to pursue social work as a career. She discusses her current job as a case manager for elderly and disabled clients in Austin. Emily talks about how the Texas Freeze impacted the health and safety of her clients, as well as its impact on her own mental health and the state at large.
Meili Criezis
This interview is with Meili Criezis, a former member of the Institute for Diversity and Civic Life team. Meili talks about growing up as a minority in majority White spaces, and the negative impacts of racial dynamics on her high school experience and opinion of Texas. She then discusses how her positive college experiences, as well as her involvement with IDCL, tempered that negativity with more respectful treatments of diversity. Meili also speaks about how she found Islam through exploration of her heritage, and what her current relationship with her faith looks like.
Avery Wright
This interview is with Avery Wright, a theater educator living in San Marcos, TX. Avery talks about growing up in College Station and living cautiously as a young transgender man. He compares these experiences to his time at Texas State, where he became involved in the student organization Bobcat PRIDE. Avery describes his leadership role in Bobcat PRIDE and the educational and entertainment events that he and the organization hosted.
Lily Trieu
This interview is with Lily Trieu, a first-generation Chinese-American and nonprofit director in Austin, TX. Lily shares her parents’ stories of coming to the US, living as a low-income family, and struggling with assimilation. She talks about her busy youth and her education. Lily describes her path from working in corporate marketing to working in policy advocacy and founding Asian Texans for Justice. She also shares her perspectives on anti-Asian racism and the needs of communities like hers.