As I type this, I am sweating. I went to a die-in by the Extinction Rebellion chapter in my city this afternoon on a pedestrian bridge, where all the participants laid down in the middle of the path under the bright sun to symbolize dying from climate disaster. At this die-in, an older couple, a man and a woman, stopped on the bridge and asked one of the organizers, “Why climate action?”

Indian, American. Immigrant, Culture. Sexism, Racism. Wife, Mother, Physician.

These labels, these titles have been, and continue to be such a prominent part of my life. They define me.

I started dating and felt consciously discriminated against for the first time. Coming out of a long term relationship, moving to a bigger city and really putting myself out there, made me realize that I look different and I do not like it.

As a member of the LGBTQ+ community and as a person of color, there are times where I find it difficult to see myself being represented. I’ve realized that the lack of Asian LGBTQ+ representation has impacted the way that I feel about myself as a young woman.

I can’t speak or understand Hindi, much like many American children of Indian immigrants. I garble my way through popular Bollywood songs and I watch my movies with subtitles, but that doesn’t stop me from appreciating Indian cinema.

"Planet has only until 2030 to stem catastrophic climate change"

"We have 12 years to act on climate change before the world as we know it is lost."

"It is absolutely time to panic about climate change"