bio
Alyssa Dawamana Macy is of the Wasco, Navajo, and Hopi descent and a member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Oregon. She was born to American Indian Movement activists and raised on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation in central Oregon. She has a Bachelor of Science in Justice Studies from Arizona State University and is finishing a Masters Degree in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota. She currently resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
She picked up a camera at an early age and has captured images that span most of her life. She credits her father for her love for the art and both her parents for her knowledge and dedication to Indigenous peoples struggles. By bringing together her love for photography and her activism, she is growing as a photojournalist. Her camera and note pad have been her steady partner throughout her global travels.
She believes that media – it’s content, form, and expression – has an impact on all who consume it. It is tied to issues of social justice, power, and equity and continues to be both a positive and negative force in our communities. She believes that media, in all its forms, feeds the mind and strengthens the spirit. Therefore, she is committed to providing content that will help the mind grow and touch the spirit. Alyssa works with Indigenous organizations and allied partners to develop content for alternative media outlets with a focus on reaching young people and communities of color. Most recently, she photographed and reported from the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York. Through her photography and reporting, she provided timely updates on the proceedings over the two-week period. She continues to photograph social justice movements in addition to writing about the experiences.
Alyssa has over 10 years in community organizing and communications. She led an unprecedented effort to mobilize Native American voters in the 2004 and continues to work with Native American people on a variety of civic engagement initiatives. Her political work also includes working with Hip Hop Congress, the League of Young Voters, and other organizations that work on engaging young people in the political process. She has also developed a number of online communication tools for Native people that focus on education and politics that have collectively grown to over 4200 subscribers.
In addition to documenting social justice movements, she also is an avid photographer and participant of hip-hop culture. She has a wide collection of photos from all the elements of hip-hop: Emcees, DJ’s, bboys and bgirls, and graffiti and is often spotted photographing hip-hop events throughout the country. She also writes on hip-hop events for a variety of alternative media outlets.
Alyssa serves on the Board of the League of Young Voters and the Northwest Federation of Community Organizations and the Advisory Committee for Hip Hop Congress.