Meet the members!!!
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Leilani K. Jimenez
1. Who are you? (Hobbies, skills, interests, passions, extracurricular involvements)
My name is Leilani Jimenez, and I’m a senior at Eagle Rock High School. I love reading autobiographies about artists during the ‘60s/‘70s (Patti Smith, David Hockney, Basquiat, Warhol, Ginsberg, etc) and watching nostalgic films about youth culture and identity. My world usually orbits the realm of screenwriting, drawing, and making collages. I’m pretty passionate about Kyle Maclachlan. <3
2. Where do you see yourself in ten years? Field of work that compels you?
Sort of an underlying core grounding all of my interests is the work involving representation. Although I don’t know what career I’m absolutely set on yet, I really enjoy screenwriting and advocating for legislation. It’s interesting because in film and in the media, the screenwriter bears an artistic influence, and has the power to comment on a valuable part of his or her experience. As a young woman of color, I’ve recognized disparities and misrepresentation in the media directly relating to my identity, and I’ve realized that that medium feels right, getting to work with dialogue and story layered with music and visuals. On the note of legislation, I’ve been in Youth and Government (a Model Legislature and Court program) for two years, and the experience has helped me understand the necessity of communication on a more direct level in order to effect tangible change. Whether it be in film or politics (or both), I’ll be doing what I love! 3. What is your history in connection to Girls Build Los Angeles?
Last year, my friend’s sister and her friends started the club, and I appreciated the fact that the team was working to craft a space in which everyone felt accepted, and were given the resources to listen and be heard themselves, especially since areas of health (especially relating to emotional/mental health) can pass on neglected. This year, with most of the club’s founding members gone for college, I wanted to build on that passion and be a part of a team.4. Why does this project matter to you?
High school is a different experience for everyone, and taking a John-Hughes-Breakfast-Club approach, it’s really difficult to recognize what makes someone the person they’ve become without caring to know who they are, or empathizing. And I think that part has become really lost in our culture; everything can be very surface level and superficial, and invite assumptions. As a person who is very much in her own head a lot of the time, I’ve been actively working to balance all areas of my health and relearn a lot of things I’ve internalized over my personal history and culture. But it’s impossible for one to do that without other people; support, encouragement, resources, and dialogue are only a few components that build a foundation for one to feel more empowered to succeed. If I can alleviate any area of doubt inhibiting a person from feeling like their thoughts don’t matter, or invite someone to a workshop in which they even learn something new about self-expression and their identity, then I’ll be doing what matters to me. :)5. What is your role?
A lot of things have been in flux, so my roles have been shifting. I entered the club as historian (in charge of creative direction, social media, and writing among other things) but have since taken on roles to reach out to different organizations, conduct interviews, lead meetings as co-president with my friend Sara, and organize events. I’m kind of all over the place, and the experience is rewarding. I get to meet a lot of people, so it’s really fun.6. What is your individual goal in this project?
My fourth answer probably elaborates on this one a great deal!
My name is Leilani Jimenez, and I’m a senior at Eagle Rock High School. I love reading autobiographies about artists during the ‘60s/‘70s (Patti Smith, David Hockney, Basquiat, Warhol, Ginsberg, etc) and watching nostalgic films about youth culture and identity. My world usually orbits the realm of screenwriting, drawing, and making collages. I’m pretty passionate about Kyle Maclachlan. <3
2. Where do you see yourself in ten years? Field of work that compels you?
Sort of an underlying core grounding all of my interests is the work involving representation. Although I don’t know what career I’m absolutely set on yet, I really enjoy screenwriting and advocating for legislation. It’s interesting because in film and in the media, the screenwriter bears an artistic influence, and has the power to comment on a valuable part of his or her experience. As a young woman of color, I’ve recognized disparities and misrepresentation in the media directly relating to my identity, and I’ve realized that that medium feels right, getting to work with dialogue and story layered with music and visuals. On the note of legislation, I’ve been in Youth and Government (a Model Legislature and Court program) for two years, and the experience has helped me understand the necessity of communication on a more direct level in order to effect tangible change. Whether it be in film or politics (or both), I’ll be doing what I love! 3. What is your history in connection to Girls Build Los Angeles?
Last year, my friend’s sister and her friends started the club, and I appreciated the fact that the team was working to craft a space in which everyone felt accepted, and were given the resources to listen and be heard themselves, especially since areas of health (especially relating to emotional/mental health) can pass on neglected. This year, with most of the club’s founding members gone for college, I wanted to build on that passion and be a part of a team.4. Why does this project matter to you?
High school is a different experience for everyone, and taking a John-Hughes-Breakfast-Club approach, it’s really difficult to recognize what makes someone the person they’ve become without caring to know who they are, or empathizing. And I think that part has become really lost in our culture; everything can be very surface level and superficial, and invite assumptions. As a person who is very much in her own head a lot of the time, I’ve been actively working to balance all areas of my health and relearn a lot of things I’ve internalized over my personal history and culture. But it’s impossible for one to do that without other people; support, encouragement, resources, and dialogue are only a few components that build a foundation for one to feel more empowered to succeed. If I can alleviate any area of doubt inhibiting a person from feeling like their thoughts don’t matter, or invite someone to a workshop in which they even learn something new about self-expression and their identity, then I’ll be doing what matters to me. :)5. What is your role?
A lot of things have been in flux, so my roles have been shifting. I entered the club as historian (in charge of creative direction, social media, and writing among other things) but have since taken on roles to reach out to different organizations, conduct interviews, lead meetings as co-president with my friend Sara, and organize events. I’m kind of all over the place, and the experience is rewarding. I get to meet a lot of people, so it’s really fun.6. What is your individual goal in this project?
My fourth answer probably elaborates on this one a great deal!