PRESIDENT (she/her)

Nishi is a civil rights attorney in New Orleans and litigates around various criminal justice issues affecting currently and formerly incarcerated people throughout Louisiana. She most recently went to trial on a federal class action suit on behalf of the 6,000 people incarcerated at Angola prison based on the lack of adequate medical care and accommodations for people with disabilities. She graduated from NYU Law School in 2015, where she was a Hays Civil Liberties fellow, a Notes Editor on the NYU Law Review, and co-chair of the South Asian Law Students Association. After graduation, she clerked for Judge Watford on the Ninth Circuit and Judge Furman on the Southern District of New York. Prior to law school, she was a middle school math teacher in New Orleans.

VICE-PRESIDENT (she/her)

Zain is the Director of Development and Communications at OneJustice, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that brings life-changing legal help to those in need. Zain holds Bachelor's degrees in Anthropology and Women's Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master of Public Administration from the University of New Orleans. Zain grew up internationally in Bolivia, Pakistan, Venezuela, and Ukraine. Her volunteer hours are dedicated to supporting the Ukrainian resistance, fighting for LGBTQIA+ and Reproductive Justice, and working with community initiatives to help heal Louisiana from the pain of mass incarceration. A 12 year resident of New Orleans, she spends as much time as she can engaging in the culture of the city, working on her Mardi Gras costume, and traveling.

TREASURER (she/her)

Jamila is senior counsel at Lawyering Project--a national non-profit that uses the law to improve abortion access and uphold the rights and dignity of people seeking and providing abortion care. Before that, she was the Deputy Director at Promise of Justice Initiative and is the former Senior Supervising Attorney for Southern Poverty Law Center’s criminal justice work in Louisiana. Prior to coming to work and live in Louisiana, Jamila learned how to “fight like a girl” on the Board of Directors for Legal Voice: a progressive feminist organization using the power of the law to make change in the Pacific Northwest with, and on behalf of, those affected by gender oppression and injustice. Her advocacy against gender oppression began when she chaired a municipal women’s commission driven much by her personal experiences as a single teenaged mother in a low-income community. She believes in the human right to maintain the bodily autonomy that allows people to have children; to not have children; and to parent the children we have.

SECRETARY (she/her)

Kytara is a fat, queer Black feminist public health practitioner. She is a graduate of Tulane University’s school of public health. She is interested in all things relating to reproductive health and rights of black women and girls. Her approach to health is through a queer black feminist and fat positivity lens. A native Detroiter, Kytara currently lives in New Orleans. She has worked with Planned Parenthood and served as a presenter and track coordinator at Allied Media Conference for the past 6 years. Kytara also serves on the Racial Equity & Inclusion Committee of Lift Louisiana.

(he/him)

Erich has worked in nonprofit fundraising and campaign organizing since 2014, starting as a street canvasser in New Orleans advocating for marriage equality. Since then, he has overseen canvass offices around the country and has been able to fundraise on behalf of groups like Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Audubon Society, and the National LGBTQ Task Force. In addition to fundraising, he has campaigned for progressive candidates, most recently having worked on a campaign to elect Democrats to the Texas State Legislature during to 2018 Midterms.

PAST-PRESIDENT (she/her)

Geraldine is an advocate for reproductive rights, equity in health care access, and education. A first generation Latine college graduate, she is particularly interested in how these issues affect traditionally marginalized, immigrant, and Spanish speaking communities. She earned a BA in Public Relations with a double minor in Marketing & Small Business Development, and an MPS in Health & Wellness Management, with a concentration in Corporate Wellness & Health Leadership both from Tulane University. She is the Director of Operations, with WAKE (Women’s Alliance for Knowledge Exchange), and prior Senior Administrative Program Coordinator with Tulane University, School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health Sciences. Her professional journey began as a bilingual Community Liaison with Planned Parenthood of Central New Jersey. Following her 2007 move to New Orleans, she filled a similar role with Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast developing, and delivering culturally competent, reproductive health education in English and Spanish, in clinical and community settings. An alumni of Tulane University Leadership Institute’s first Anti Racism Leadership Program, and former Adjunct Lecturer with Phyllis M. Taylor Center for Social Innovation & Design Thinking at Tulane University, she led a change making, undergraduate career development lab. She is the former Vice President, serving President, and a founding Lift Louisiana Advisory Board member.

EX OFFICIO MEMBER (she/her)

Ellie is an attorney in New Orleans with extensive experience representing health care providers, and is one of the only attorneys in Louisiana who regularly represents reproductive health care providers. She has represented clinics and other health services providers in enforcement proceedings or other disputes against health care regulatory bodies, including wrongful license revocation actions. Ellie also litigates cases in both state and federal court to challenge new laws and regulations that restrict access to health care. She represents physicians in disputes with the disciplinary agencies that regulate the health care profession, and in suits against hospitals for wrongfully suspending hospital privileges. She works closely with local and national advocacy groups, including testifying as an expert at the Louisiana Legislature, to oppose new laws that would damage reproductive health care rights and access, and works to raise public and media awareness surrounding these issues. She also helped to establish the Louisiana Coalition for Reproductive Freedom and serves on its Executive Committee. Ellie received her undergraduate degree in English and German from Colgate University and her law degree from Tulane Law School.

Are you passionate about reproductive rights and justice in Louisiana? Lift Louisiana is seeking dedicated leaders to join our Advisory Board and help guide our mission to protect and expand access to reproductive healthcare. As an Advisory Board member, you’ll provide strategic insight, expand our network, and support advocacy efforts that make a real impact in our communities. This is a meaningful opportunity to lend your expertise and voice to a critical movement.

Interested? Learn more and apply today!