Jessica HairstonJessica Emmaline Ke'Mani Hairston, pen name Je'Mani, is an Oakland-born and raised poet. She is a student of English at Northeastern University at Mills in Oakland. Jessica grew up dancing and playing jazz drums. She spent most of her youth trying tolearn how to rage out through hip hop dance but struggled to trust the cipher and her ability to move and flow because surrendering is easier said than done. Now, she'll be the first one to tell that once we accept the art of letting go, art becomes therapy. Jessica lives with mental health battles that inform how she meets the world but doesn't let those conditions stop her from moving with grace and following her purpose. Her life experiences have ripened her interest in Black psychology, racial trauma, and mental health in addition to writing in the area of social work. While attending Mills College (before its merger with Northeastern), she and two other Black students pioneered a Racial Trauma initiative known as the Black Wellness Package. The Black Wellness Package supports Black students to succeed in higher education by receiving support for the continuous racial trauma. The BlackWellness Package is concrete items aimed at racial equity in the classroom. Je'Mani is a former foster child, and adult adoptee, who reunited with birth family in 2018 at the age of 19, effectively changing her life forever. Her passion for creative writing is where she can synthesize all of herself at the behest of her own wishes, satisfaction, relief, and artistic expression. Read More Read Less