The Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies in Religion (CLGS) at Pacific School of Religion is pleased to welcome Maij Mai as our new Coordinator of the CLGS Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Roundtable. Maij, who lives and works in/from North Carolina, began their work in this position on 1 September 2021.
Below is a brief biographical sketch of Maij:
Maij (they/he/sib/homie/fam) is a BlackVietnameseBipolarTransNonbinaryQueer currently existing in and with beloved community in Winston-Salem, NC. Maij’s formal education and training consists of a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology and Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies, as well as a Masters of Divinity from Wake Forest University.
A creative visionary, organizer, and liberation companion from the South, their soul work centers the bodies, voices, and lived experiences of oppressed peoples striving to transform their imaginations and worlds.
Maij is and will forever be a student of community liberation and their work and curiosities are informed by the following questions: What does liberation actually look like? What does it feel like? Taste like? Smell like? Breathe like? And do our current imaginations and practices match our understanding and dreams of liberation?
Maij’s own experimentation, exploration, and practice of collective liberation work has included the following:
- Designing, facilitating, and cultivating spiritual justice spaces where queer and trans folks can re-imagine and re-define their own liberating relationships with spirituality, faith, and religion
- Developing and facilitating healing and transformative justice spaces/workshops for individuals and organizations seeking to build more robust care/healing networks within their communities
- Collaborating and consulting with local grassroots organizations and initiatives seeking to develop more sustainable and intentional organizing practices
Some of Maij’s favorite activities include laying out in warm patches of sunlight, loving on/nurturing their houseplants, and napping in their favorite place in the world- their bed. They look forward to collaborating with the CLGS team as the Coordinator of the CLGS Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Roundtable, where they’ll be continuing CLGS’s commitment to cultivate strong coalitions and networks amongst API LGBTQ+ community members/accomplices striving to transform API spiritual wellness and liberation.
Welcome to CLGS , Maij!