This website is named in honor of Lucy Gray and Katniss’ defiant curtsy – a seemingly small act of rebellion – that led to liberation in their world of The Hunger Games.

Welcome, dear reader, to this website dedicated to exploring pop culture through an equity and inclusion lens.

I was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. It was tough growing up not seeing people who looked like me on TV and in the movies or in books.

Even in multicultural Los Angeles, where residents speak more than 224 languages (only second to New York City, where more than 800 languages are spoken), white was the dominant culture in the eyes of this kid of Mexican and Filipino descent.

My essay “Hollywood Smile: When I Was a Kid, I Wanted to Be White” details how this lack of representation in the media affected my self-esteem and self-image.

Gen Z is growing up seeing people who look like them on TV and in movies, books, podcasts, social media, and…everywhere. Of course, they face a whole host of challenges that my generation didn’t.

This website is dedicated to those, like me, who have a different experience and perspective of the world we live in. Whether your various identities (your superpowers!) are visible or invisible, whether you’re a child of immigrant parents, or a first-generation college graduate, or queer, or hold other identities that make you, you.

I hope you’ll find a home here. I hope you feel like you belong.

Welcome!

Kat Valdez
February 2024