“I’m originally from Iran, then moved to the east coast with my family. As soon as I turned 17, I became a citizen. A month later, I joined the National Guard for 6 years during the Iraq/Afghanistan wars. I went to college, law school, got my MBA, then started working. When I came to work here at UCSD, I found out about the Veterans Staff Association. I started attending their meetings and became a regular member, listening in and volunteering when I could. Last year, when the police brutality and racial justice protests started and the military got pulled into the conversation about law enforcement, I proposed putting on lectures led by history experts regarding how the military has historically dealt with issues around race, ethnicity, gender identity, etc. In August, everything about my identity came to a complete crash when we pulled out of Afghanistan. The veteran community’s collective consciousness just awakened in an immense way. I started volunteering for #AfghanEvac, a coalit...