Meet Cherise

Cherise Charleswell is a self-proclaimed Wombanist and reluctant “academic”, who is also a self -and- internationally published author, writer, and activist, who is Feminist Enough– to also work as a model. She is a Biocultural anthropologist, independent scholar and public health practioner. Her educational background includes undergraduate degrees in the biological sciences (microbiology concentration) and cultural anthropology, as well as a masters in public health.Cherise is of West Indian descent, with heritage from numerous Caribbean islands, and this complex heritage fuels her interests in international health and focusing on the needs of women and girls, and other “marginalized majorities” domestically and abroad.
She is the President-Elect of the Southern California Public Health Association, Chair of the Hampton Institutes Women’s Issues Department, Chair of the National Women’s Studies Association Social Justice Task Force, and sits on the Governing Board of the Society for the Analysis of African American Public Health Issues.

Words she lives by: “By Any Means Necessary”, whether that relates to one’s fight for justice, liberation, and equality, career advancement, or any goal that one sets for themselves. We should utilize every available strategy to see our goal to fruition.

Labels that I accept: Eldest sister, eldest aunt, activist, woman, sista-friend, truth-seeker, feminist, womanist

Media sources that I use to keep up on current events: (In no particular order) Of course many of the wonderful programs broadcast here on kpfk.org, The Nation Magazine, TruthOut.org, Al Jazeera, BBC World News, Common Dreams, For Harriet. Crunk Feminist Collective, The Feminist Wire, Rhandi Rhodes.com, RH Reality Check, The Huffington Post, Huff Post Black Voices, The Progressive Radio Network, Counter Current News, American Public Health Association’s The Nation’s Health and Public Health Newswire, Mother Jones, New Politics Magazine, Ms. Magazine, Bitch Magazine, International Planned Parenthood Federation, Women of Color Network, Bluestockings Magazine, On The Issues Magazine, Black Agenda Report, The Raw Story, Cultures of Resistance, Reader Supported News, Daily Kos, PBS News Wire, Reuters, The Independent, The Guardian.
Other websites, think tanks, and social media sites of these organizations, which are updated often: Health Equity Institute, AWID women’s rights, National Partnership For Women, Institute for New Economic Thinking, Socialist Alliance, Guerilla Feminism, Role Reboot, SOLIDARITY: a socialist, feminist, anti-racist organization, Economic Policy Institute, Institute for Latin American Studies, CODE RED for gender justice, 1804 Caribbean Voices,

Always in my fridge: Avocadoes, I have a strange addiction!

Musical Preferences: I’m a Caribbean gyal, so of course it would be soca, dancehall, reggae, calypso, reggaeton, and other sounds from the region. I also love afrobeat and highlife. You will also catch me listening (and moving to) r&b/soul/neo-soul, some hip hop, 80s music, some classic rock, and alternative rock. I guess that I have a really eclectic ear.

I am Feminist Enough to: revel in my femininity, apply a little lip gloss, wear lacy thong underwear, adorn myself with clothing that do not attempt to hide my natural curvature — my feminine form, and slip on a pair of stilletto heels, and still remain just as assertive, strong, and powerful as any man in a room.