Darlene Elias 

is a writer and poet from Western Mass. She is a Hawaiian Boricua, Anti Colonial Feminista, who uses literature, poetry, and spoken word to elevate and validate her experience as part of the diaspora living in the U.S. She is the Co Founder of the Writing Sisters, a collective of BIPOC & LGBTQ women who meet twice a month to share and grow their skills as literary artist and have a positive impact in the community. Her vision is to bring the joy of writing to other women like herself. Darlene grew up poor in the barrios of the South Bronx and Holyoke. This is what makes her who she is today. She is currently working on her memoir and a poetry collection.