MEET QUEEN AJ!

PICTURE IT: City of Angels - 1781. El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles del Río de Porciúncula (The Town of Our Lady, QUEEN of The Angels of the Porciúncula River). A divine name, fit for an ethereal leader, guiding magical angels through a mystical new ‘Heaven-on-Earth’.

Fast forward to 2026. The name has been simplified to Los Angeles, although LOS(t) Angeles unfortunately seems to paint the canvas more accurately. A sea of our angels, barely treading water - or floating belly up - leaving a soul shattering trail of broken crowns, chipped wings, lost halos, diminished glow, and vanished hope washing ashore in its wake. From the hollows of Skid Row, to the terror induced by ICE, from the affordability crisis, to the trash-lined streets and cracked infrastructure. All tied together with 6-feet potholes deep enough to bury the mounting indifference from City Hall.

Despite the systemic neglect and abandonment embedded in every brush stroke, somehow this City of Angels still presses forward. Still moves. Still breathes. Still laughs. Still loves. Still creates. Still LIVES. Why? Easy - THAT, is THE ANGELENO magic in action.

I am all too familiar with struggle: between growing up in poverty, various poverty-related physical and mental health issues, and my current 3+ year experience with houselessness, I’ve had my fair share of hard knocks. The harsh realities of basic need insecurities (food, water, shelter, healthcare, education) linger far beyond the 24 hour day cycle. The knowledge I gained going through these experiences, as well as watching my single black mom of 3 successfully lift us out of poverty in my teenage years, solidified one inarguable conclusion: community and collaboration produces the solution to any problem. As a mayoral candidate, I am already ACTIVELY strengthening and expanding upon my ultimate finding: producing community-driven solutions to make our city affordable and sustainable. Call it ‘A city built for Angels’, if you will.

Enter in Queen AJ. I think longer term than just ‘running/campaigning’ for mayor of Los Angeles. I am actively preparing for and embodying the role of mayor IN REAL TIME - refusing to wait for titles, elections, or dates on a calendar to deliver action me and my fellow Angelenos so rightfully deserve. Preparation includes: diving into the history of Los Angeles (hence discovery of the beautiful, yet lengthy full name), learning powers and scope of the mayor’s office, learning about all 15 councilmembers (including policy records) and the neighborhoods lodged within their districts, learning about all 55 city departments, familiarizing myself with the Charter that lays the groundwork for how our city is run, networking with individuals and businesses alike to get first hand perspectives on issues in our city and best ways to communally solve them, and the formation of a full mental map of Los Angeles via public transportation (including a commitment to travel every Metro line in Los Angeles). I also have a fully detailed plan of action for each step of my journey, from the campaign trail, to inside the mayor’s office post election, to long after I leave office; again highlighting the importance of long-term sustainability to me.

I see Los Angeles as a beautiful two-part portrait: in one half, we as Angelenos get to collectively care for, nurture, and preserve our heavenly city. In the other half, we get to individually add our unique style, perspective, and vision to the ever-evolving artwork that is the City of Angels. My vision for our city is rooted in clarity, love, equity, reciprocity, community, and creation in action. As a professional artist (professional = greater than 10,000 hours invested in a specific field), community relations manager AND community organizer, I specialize in creation, social & emotional learning, and understanding, navigating, and developing human behavior. Mastering skills such as grassroots development and coalition-building, in conjunction with the aforementioned human behavioral and SEL training, I intentionally guide human beings to choose healthy and desirable choices for themselves. Most importantly, I use those choices to then empower people into make those changes sustainable and long-term.

With active and healing presence, I have steadily transformed communities and the standards in which they operate from coast to coast. From organizations such as Cell A65 in Alabama, to Los Angeles Community Action Network right here in LA, I have intentionally invested the last 15 years of my life combating injustice while simultaneously uniting people across a multitude of different (sometimes conflicting) ideologies, beliefs, and walks of life. A few other organization I am actively involved in and contribute to are: Downtown Women’s Action Coalition (DWAC), Stop LAPD Spying, Starts with One Today, South Central Clean-Up, and Community Self-Defense Coalition. I believe in being an active member in my community because we as human beings thrive best in collaboration. And, I strategically network with community leaders and organizations that deal with varying issues across LA; assuring I maintain access to intel, connections, and perspectives of complex issues in our city far passed my personal experience.

Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles (Our Lady, QUEEN of The Angeles) has returned. I, Queen AJ, envision the best, healthiest, and most genuine leader leading with discernment: knowing when to be out front (or in the office), knowing when to ease up and follow the leaders within the community, and knowing when to completely fall back and assure no one is left behind. This campaign prioritizes the well-being of ALL Angelenos. Included in that is voluntary ACTION and ACCOUNTABILITY to Every. Single. Angel…That makes Los Angeles the masterpiece we are. Any interactions with lobbyists, corporate interests, big oil/pharma/tech are out of alignment with my morals - meaning ZERO MONEY will be accepted and ZERO ENERGY will be exchanged. NON. NEGOTIABLE.

With your collaboration fellow Angelenos, let’s create a THRIVING City of Angels.

Welcome to LOS ANGELES: DIVINITY RE-IMAGINED.