We are the Center for Native American Youth

Our Vision is for all Native American youth to lead full and healthy lives, to have equal access to opportunity, and to draw strength from their culture and inspire one another.

MALIA

CHOCTAW
AGE: 17

I am a junior at Parker School. I have most recently become interested in photography and mixed media. Before that I was also passionate in pottery. I like to think that my art work not only represents me, but also a piece of my ancestors who also made their own forms of art before me, to show their heritage and culture.

I believe that my first art piece is a representation of the ‘aina (island) that I live on. I am from the island of Hawai’i and within Native Hawaiian culture, water can be seen as an integral part of life. I hope that in my photo I am able to capture the beauty and vitality that is home to Native Hawaiians and is the place I am most familiar with.

BACK TO ALL POSTS

“As intergenerational trauma survivors (and those who are still suffering) we must shift our minds from focusing on what has been lost and change it to the conscious awareness of what we can still learn.”

-Madison White,

MOHAWK NATION OF AKWESASNE, 2019 Champion for Change