LSP 58: Know History, Know Self with Justine Ramos

Justine Ramos is a first-generation Pilipinx immigrant and recent UCLA Alumna (C/O 2020) with degrees in English, Human Biology and Society, and Global Health. She is a Doctor of Occupational Therapy candidate, author of the upcoming poetry collection,“Halo-Halo,” and currently works at the Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

She has performed, competed, and judged in the Slam Poetry/Spoken Word world throughout high school and college. She has been able to coach her own slam team, mentor young poets, found UCLA's only slam poetry organization, win awards with the LA Youth Poet Laureate Program and later become published with WriteGirl, Teen Ink Literary Magazine, and Cornell University's literary magazine, Rainy Day.

She was inspired to write this book because she felt the need to tell the stories of her community, country, people, and family that often go untold and ignored. She hopes to share these stories to remind people that they aren’t alone in these experiences of struggle and their exploration of identity.