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> Vianey Ramirez
 Natural Born
Leader Weaves Together Many Strands of Activism to Make Space for the Next Generation of Queer Activists
Vianey Ramirez,
22, a former cheerleading captain born and raised in Watts,
California has always bucked the odds - and the stereotypes.
At 16,
Vianey came out as lesbian. Coming out is a challenge for most youth,
but because of the cultural and religious traditions in her community and family,
for Vianey it was especially difficult. Although her father, who Vianey
describes as "mellow," accepted Vianey's sexual orientation easily, her mother
has yet to acknowledge that it is more than "just a phase" because to her,
Vianey doesn't "look gay."
Vianey's
father Jose and her mother Marlene grew up impoverished and uneducated
in Mexico and Nicaragua. They immigrated to the U.S. so Vianey and her two
younger brothers could get the education that they never had. The family even
cut corners and took on extra jobs to pay for their children to attend local
Catholic schools because Watts' public schools are mediocre.
St. Matthias
High School - the all girl parochial school Vianey attended - did
provide good educational opportunities, but the Catholic environment reinforced
conservative values and gender norms. So when Vianey started dating the captain
of the girls soccer team, rumors started to swirl among the student body. How
could the popular and feminine cheerleader be a lesbian?
Coming out in
high school gave Vianey her first taste of what it means to be a
role model for other queer youth. A natural leader, she was extremely active at
St. Matthias High School. Her grades were excellent, she was a member of student
council and led the cheerleading squad. Vianey used her extensive involvement
and leadership skills to educate peers not only about homophobia, but also about
the interrelated issues of class, race and sexism.
"Growing up
in Watts as a first generation Latina born in America, I am
intimately aware of the connections between class and race issues," explains
Vianey. "As a feminine lesbian who attended an all girls Catholic high school,
my life has also been shaped by heterosexism and traditional gender norms.
I question these traditions through my activism, and I try to expose the links
among different types of oppressions in order to bring disenfranchised
communities together."
After her senior
year at St. Matthias, Vianey enrolled at University of
California at Riverside and became the first in her family to attend college.
At UC Riverside, Vianey's activism took off. She revitalized the once vibrant
Latino-Queer campus organization "Que Onda Queers" (QOQ) and founded "UC Are
Womyn" to raise awareness about sexism facing women - particularly women of
color - on campus. The group attracted over 50 members in its first year.
To empower female
students, UC Are Womyn placed posters across campus, which
were routinely ripped down by vandals. But school administrators were reluctant
to address the defacement when Vianey brought it to their attention. Without
the support of the administration, UC Are Womyn had to repost the flyers three
times a week in order to get their message out.
The hostile campus
environment also played a role in Vianey's biggest struggle
as an activist to date. During her senior year, "The Highlander," UC Riverside's
student newspaper, repeatedly ran homophobic and racist comic strips. Again, the
University administration remained mute. To bolster support for the offensive
cartoons' removal, Vianey helped to weave together a message that included
homophobia, racism and sexism. She brought together diverse student groups
affected by the derogatory caricatures to comment at a special campus Town Hall
meeting. University professors were moved to join the fight. Ultimately, the
paper stopped publishing the cartoons.
Vianey is most
proud of her role as a key organizer of the second annual Womyn
of Color Conference, which focused on violence against women of color. Along
with a handful of committed volunteers, she helped to raise an astounding $15,000
to put on the event. The Conference also included screenings of documentary
films and a student-run production of Eve Ensler's Vagina Monologues, featuring
Vianey in the role of "The Angry Vagina."
Vianey graduated
cum laude from both the Women's Studies and Sociology
departments this year and recently started professional school at the University
of California Hastings School of Law. After her long experience with different
campus and community organizations, Vianey looks forward to working with UC
Hastings LGBT student association, the school's women's law journal, and La Raza
Student Law Association. She intendeds to practice public interest law and
would love to work for ACLU or Lambda Legal.
"Vianey is
such a magnetic and charismatic person," says Dylan Rodriruez,
Professor of Ethnic Studies at UC Riverside. "And she has no fear. As she
moves through this world, Vianey helps to create more space for other people
to be themselves."
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