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Amy Quichiz’s father would manifest every time he would pass the United Nations in New York City, hoping that one day his daughter would speak there, Quichiz said.

Her father’s dreams came true in June 2021, when Quichiz spoke at the Generation Equality Forum with UN Women. Through her journey at Syracuse University, Quichiz said she found her community and became a confident global “feminista,” as she calls it.

“Finding your community and literally finding yourself is so important,” Quichiz said.

The alumna spoke about the importance of her undergraduate experience at SU and her Latina identity during her “Latinx Hispanic Heritage Month: Paving the Way: Alumni Series” discussion on Thursday evening. Quichiz, a first generation Colombian and Peruvian, said she is proud of her roots and Latin heritage. The Queens native, who identifies as queer, also delved into why prioritizing mental health and finding a community are important to achieve goals.

Upon graduating from SU, Quichiz first conceptualized Veggie Mijas in August 2017 as an Instagram page that supplied easy-to-make recipes for college students. The organization has since grown into a collective that brings together vegans of color to organize potlucks, create community gardens, maintain community fridges and more centering around food justice.

Veggie Mijas released Casa Verde, a plant-based cookbook authored by women of color that includes recipes from Peruvian, Venezuelan, Dominican and Mexican kitchens, to name a few. The collective has been featured in many publications including Bon Appetit, The New York Times and Self.

Quichiz works on advocating for women of color through food justice with Veggie Mijas and her educational work, she said.

Finding a vegan community of color was hard when Quichiz first became vegan, Quichiz said, as many of the gatherings geared toward vegans were populated by white vegans. Freshman Sofia Ochoa, who attended the event, said that, as a Latina, she believes the diet is discouraged in Latin communities.

“A lot of times, in our communities, veganism is looked down upon just because it is not accessible in some neighborhoods and food disparities,” Ochoa said.

Quichiz said she also interned for OutRight Action International, an organization that connects LGBTQ activists with UN leaders, and she is now studying for her master’s degree in Global Affairs at American University. While working toward her master’s, Quichiz said she is also working as a project manager for Planned Parenthood.

“There were so many twists and turns that led me here,” Quichiz said.

Quichiz graduated from SU with a degree in women’s and gender studies and sociology in 2017 despite having been advised against applying to SU by her high school adviser, she said.

“When I came to Syracuse, I found myself in a whole different world,” Quichiz said.

Many of her most powerful moments during her time at SU were spent delving into meaningful discussions with the faculty of color in the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies at SU, Quichiz said.

The thought-provoking discussions in her classes would help the alumna with her experiences at the Chadwick Residence, bringing concepts from the classroom to apply in real situations, she said.

“Women’s and Gender Studies saved me,” Quichiz said.

During her time at SU, Quichiz was involved in many organizations on and off campus. Notably, she was the treasurer of Students Advocating for Sexual Safety and Empowerment, a writer for The OutCrowd Magazine and a worker at the Chadwick Residence, a local women’s refugee shelter.

“School was a priority for my parents, but I did not know where school would take me,” Quichiz said.

Now, Quichiz inspires many to follow their own journeys, according to students at the event.

Max Yogeshwar is a senior at SU and president of Qolor Collective, a student organization for queer students of color at SU, and he attended the event featuring Quichiz. Quichiz’s journey as a queer Latina woman brings attention to how important it is to find spaces for Latinx women, Yogeshwar said. Yogeshwar also said that Qolor aims to find those spaces as well.

“To work in a global sense to advocate for LGBT women and how to subvert whiteness is important,” Yogeshwar said.

During her discussion, Quichiz emphasized prioritizing mental health as part of her success. Nikki Ick, an SU sophomore and Qolor Collective member, said that she notices that mental health typically isn’t prioritized in communities of color.

Quichiz’s story impacts many of the queer people of color that she tells her story to, particularly the value she puts on holding space for understanding mental health in relation to queer identity.

“Hearing about a queer woman of color talk about mental health, like she brought that up a lot with her journey, I think it was very inspiring,” Ick said.

Published on October 1, 2021 at 12:04 pm