Kamau is a politocultural organizer from Detroit’s east side with passions for community and storytelling. Kamau uses political education & cultural strategy to support concentrations of Energy Justice, Leadership Development, & Co-Governance. In order to build SEMIsaic, our unified dream of organized residents of Southeast Michigan, we must be persistently curious and care for each other. That is to say, movement must start with developing the power & solidarity of black Detroiters.

In her work Kate has a large interest in tech accessibility and helping the team with all their needs. Kate has a broad range of skills from a history in private software development. She is proud to work at WTPMI and to apply her personal values and professional skills to support the organization. Kate is located in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan, and in her free time enjoys gardening and sewing projects.

Maya is a lifelong Detroiter and womanist. The foundation for her desire for action was seeing the examples of black womanhood and her family’s engagement with politics. This influence manifested her destiny of participating in fighting for equity and accountability, which she has been able to do by creating politically motivated theatre and, more recently, with direct action.

Maya will graduate from Wayne State University with a BA in Sociology in Spring 2023 and plans to pursue movement work after. Her adoration of Detroit’s singular signature and the subcultures that come with it is what inspires her to uplift the voices of Detroiters. She feels divinely blessed to be one of many Gen-Z people building a world they feel proud to leave behind.

Maya believes in experiencing joy whenever doable. Anytime she gets a chance, she’ll take an incredibly long walk, read tarot, immerse herself in theatre, or eat as much vegan soft serve as possible.

Elizabeth facilitates human resources and organizational development, working to build groups’ capacity, courage, and relationships. Though she has worked with a variety of businesses and organizations, her heart is in supporting grassroots organizations protecting themselves from pollutive infrastructure in high-stakes, high-risk, low-resource campaigns, strategically leveraging power to meet community goals. Currently, Elizabeth is finishing her master’s in Human Resources and Labor Relations where she continues to explore how groups of people can organize themselves in empowering, meaningful, effective, and decentralized ways. Concurrently, Elizabeth loves making and teaching pottery, foraging, tapping maple trees, paddling, and walking with her elderly pug named Basil.

Ruby Miller, originally from a small farming community in Mid-Michigan and now residing in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, is a dedicated community organizer and advocate. With a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts (sculpture) from Grand Valley State University and an Associate’s in Welding Technology from Grand Rapids Community College, Ruby’s hands-on education and working-class background shape her holistic approach to community leadership building. Passionate about uplifting the rural working-class and queer community, Ruby believes in embracing creativity, diversity, courage, and collaboration to create vibrant futures for rural areas. She continues to create and show artwork, and stays active exploring the beautiful landscape along Lake Superior.

Tristen is a lifelong resident of southwest Michigan and and a graduate of Western Michigan University with Bachelors and Masters degrees in behavioral psychology. She is an outspoken trans woman and proud member of the Queer and Trans communities of southwest Michigan. She is a former clinician and educator, and she has dedicated her personal time and energy over many years to fighting for working-class liberation in our city and beyond. She is firmly progressive and actively opposed to racist, misogynist, ableist, homophobic, and transphobic discrimination of all kinds, and she is especially dedicated to ending class-based oppression and exploitation whenever and wherever it rears its ugly head. Tristen lives in eastern Kalamazoo with her adoring husband, teenaged stepsons, and beloved pets.

Marita is a Policy and Research Analyst for We the People. She was born in Cambodia and moved to West Michigan at 11-year-old. Marita earned her B.A at the University of Michigan, dedicating her studies on the Socioeconomic Contexts of Healthcare and Health Policy. She believes that our collective existence and liberation are bound together. Working with We the People allows her to materialize her passion for justice and study in policy to cultivate realities of justice and peace for our collective existence. Outside of work, Marita loves biking, spending time on Lake Michigan, and going to live music events with friends.

Nia is a Highland Park born, Detroit organizer, community activist, and data professional. Her family’s participation in the civil and women’s rights movements, seeded in her a passion for activism that has only grown over time. Before becoming a Data Associate, Nia spent multiple years as a field organizer mobilizing voters throughout southeast Michigan.

Nia attended the University of Alabama where she earned her bachelor’s degree. While in school, she organized fellow students around issues like voting rights via electoral campaigns. She is passionate about spreading knowledge and deconstructing the mistrust of political systems within communities of color. In her current role as a Data Associate, Nia aims to use data to help organizers better reach voters and community members around vital community issues.

Diego Vasquez-Salgado is a Data Associate with We the People MI, based in Detroit. Diego was born in Temixco, Morelos, a small town in central Mexico in 1997, before migrating to the U.S. at the age of 2. As a result of his life  experiences, Diego feels strongly about the importance of fighting for human rights, labor rights, and all the rights of all people of color. 

Diego earned his Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Detroit Mercy in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing. After college, he started in the movement as a volunteer canvasser for many different campaigns, including some with We The People-MI. In his current role as a Data Associate, Diego contributes to our organizers’ work and campaigns across Michigan, and helps organizers use data to share stories about their organizing efforts and to build stronger communities across Michigan. 

Cornell C. Batie oversees We The People MI / We The People Action Fund’s finance and accounting operation. He’s a strategic leader with 30 progressive years of leveraging leadership talent in the areas of operations, finance, and
procurement.

Cornell is a high-level executive with extensive experience in running operations in both for-profit and not-for profit entities. He has a strong background in board governance; providing consultation to diverse groups of senior executives and Board of Directors on complex business strategies, board effectiveness, and developing successful corporate governance processes.

Cornell is a native Detroiter who holds two undergraduate degrees in Management and Accounting from the University
of Detroit Mercy, and a Masters of Business Administration in Finance and International Business from Wayne State University.

He is exceedingly skilled in tailoring his coaching style to unique personalities and situations, empowering staff to execute on key strategies, and driving excellence. His ability to assimilate company missions, identify key stakeholders, navigate through silos, and deliver results gained him the Spirit of Detroit and Crain’s CFO of the Year awards. Other award recognitions include the State of Michigan Special Tribute and Michigan Chronicle’s Men of Excellence.

Rachel is a Research and Policy Analyst with We the People Michigan. She is a new resident of Detroit; hailing from Los Angeles, her big Mexican family instilled a respect for education as a vehicle to change the future. Upon graduating from the University of Southern California with Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and Public Policy, she taught English as a Fulbright recipient in Taiwan, absorbing the educational and community-based culture of the rural county she considers her second home. After 2.5 years, Rachel returned to the States and earned her Master’s degree in Education Policy and Management from Harvard University while teaching in urban areas around the country, comparing her aspirational academic curriculum with stories of students’ sobering realities impacted by systemic discrimination and institutional disenfranchisement. She moved to Michigan to contribute to a vibrant and passionate environment with this organization working to create happy and healthy communities for all. 

Celina is a digital creative and strategist based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Born in China and raised in the Chicagoland area, Celina‘s cultural and life experiences have deeply informed her creative process as a queer international adoptee. She has worked in and with movements centered around reproductive justice, survivor and victim advocacy, and immigrants’ rights. When she’s not on the internet, you can find Celina cooking for her chosen family or immersed in a pile of books.