Founder, CEO, & Editor-in-Chief
Ayika Tshimanga
Ayika is a Midwest-raised Congolese-American writer and founder of The Femme Oasis magazine. In the fall of 2017, she launched the feminist magazine to fill the gap in media with content geared towards the actualization, progression, and elevation of all women and femmes.
Ayika's dedication to the marginalized is rooted in feminism, specifically Black women artists, scholars, community organizers, activists, and freedom fighters. Since coupling her recognition of the disparities yielded from social stratification and academic theory, Ayika has committed her work and art to the survival and liberation of oppressed people.
Managing Editor
Claire Caplis
Claire Caplis is a Chicagoland native and a recent graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, majoring in English with minors in Social Work and Spanish. She is passionate about feminism, social justice, literature and media, traveling, learning languages and writing.
Claire is interested in pursuing a career in the book publishing industry or in the social work field as a bilingual counselor.
Deputy Managing Editor
Maridsa Choute
Maridsa is a writer and creative from Illinois. With a bachelors degree in journalism from Illinois State University, she currently volunteers as a writer with the nonprofit organization, NoStigmas. Maridsa is also an avid reader and Netflix binge watcher. She hopes to pursue a career in entertainment journalism where she can obsess over her favorite shows and movies.
Nobody in the world, nobody in history, has ever gotten their freedom by appealing to the moral sense of the people who were oppressing them.
- Assata Shakur
Social Media Coordinator
Bre'Yana Williams
Bre’Yana is a recent graduate from Montclair State University with a Bachelors Degree in Communications & Media Arts. She has an extensive background in social media and digital editorial due to her four year involvement with the online publication Her Campus Media. In her free time, Bre’Yana can be found with a good book in hand or shopping!
There’s a saying in Africa, if you give a woman empowerment, you empower a community, you empower men, you empower man. When women become empowered and live in their strength it’s beneficiary to others, and I think as young women today we sometimes forget that we are standing on the struggle of other women. Those women had to stand up to make a change, and they were not popular, and now we’re making them unpopular again.
- Danai Gurira
Site Publisher
Alaa El-Mahrakawy
Alaa was awarded her MSc in Labour, Social Movements and Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London in 2015. She also holds a BA in Political Science from the American University in Cairo.
Her research interests include social movements; feminist and post-colonial theories; the intersections between gender, race and class and gender mobilization in the Middle East, and the struggle for domestic worker rights. Outside of her work, she can be found practicing yoga and making too much Tiramisu!
I know and do what is right better than many big men who read.
- Sojourner Truth
Career Contributor
Crystal Carter
Crystal is originally from Illinois, but is exploring a new life in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University & works as a Creative Content Developer for a cyber security firm.
Career Contributor
Gabby Gonzaga
Gabrielle is a freelance writer based in New York City. On her free time, she likes to experiment with photography, explore bookstores, and pet other peoples’ dogs.
Culture Contributor
Ariana Memishi
Ariana is a Chicago grown, Albanian-American Muslim creative. She is the first woman in her family to obtain a college degree. After obtaining her B.A. in English, she now volunteers at Chicago Public Schools while conducting research on femininity through modern literature.
Culture Contributor
Danielle Owensby
Danielle "deo" Owensby is a queer writer, photographer, and educator living the artist grind in Chicago, IL. She holds a BA in English, a BFA in Studio Arts, and a MFA in Photography. When she isn't absorbed in reading theory and criticism (always with a highlighter in hand), she enjoys taking naps and daydreaming.
Culture Contributor
Brianna Torres
Brianna Torres is a freelance journalist from Long Island, New York. With a major in Music Industry and minor in professional writing, Brianna loves to write about all topics concerning entertainment, music, and culture. On her free time, you can catch her writing poetry on her Instagram account @bri_poetry.
Feel free to check out her professional work at http://torresbrianna16.wix.com/briannamtorres or shoot an email out to torresbrianna16@gmail.com.
Lifestyle Contributor
Alicia Caffero
Alicia Caffero studied Writing and Art History at the Savannah College of Art & Design, all while hosting a sexual education radio show. Now that she’s graduated, she writes for an at-home STI testing company called Fig. She is both the “cool mom” and “man’s best friend,” and with that comes plenty of free condoms and unbridled enthusiasm. Tell her stories or ask her questions, she doesn’t bite. Just be careful: she’s not potty trained yet.
Lifestyle Contributor
Aziza Hassan
Aziza Hassan is a Writer, professional Content Producer and competitive Fencer! Aziza graduated from Temple University‘s School of Communication and Theater in Philadelphia with a degree in Journalism and Public Relations. When she's not producing content for popular websites including Genius, Time Out New York, HollywoodLife and SOHH.com, Aziza enjoys keeping readers informed on all things trending in the news via her blog #BrooklynGirlCode which she started in 2016.
Lifestyle Contributor
Kira Rice-Christianson
Kira Rice-Christianson is a 23 year old creative writer and intersectional feminist living in Chicago, IL. She's currently working toward her bachelors in English at UIC, and hoping to challenge and promote healing at The Femme Oasis.
Spirituality Contributor
Camille Benz
Camille is an Italian/American graduate from Virginia Wesleyan University with a Bachelor's in English (creative writing). Having lived most of her life in Italy, she loves sharing her travelling experiences and cultural traditions. In her free time she enjoys reading European literature and writing young adult fiction. She hopes to publish many books in the future that will make young girls smile, laugh, and believe in themselves.
Spirituality Contributor
Clarissa Cottrill
Clarissa Cottrill is a multimedia journalist who seeks to uncover the stories of many intersectional identities. She has roots in the heart of Appalachia and identifies as interfaith, with Jewish and Christian background. Finding out how cultures vary and impact the lives of people from all walks of life is part of her love of storytelling. In her spare time, she’s enjoys traveling, relaxing with her cat and Netflix and partaking in a political debate or two.
Spirituality Contributor
Gracen Hansen
Health enthusiast, avid reader and yogi here to bring new perspectives and ideas with an open mind and open heart.
Look closely at the present you are constructing: it should look like the future you are dreaming.
- Alice Walker
Copy Editor
Laurie Bullock
Laurie is a freelance writer and social media editor in Long Beach, California. She is passionate about writing and sharing stories to help people feel connected and inspire change. When she's not sitting in front of a computer, she's most likely to be found outside running, hiking, or swimming in the Pacific Ocean. Like most Southern Californian transplants, she's always on the hunt for the best taco place in the area.
Copy Editor
Nicole Calabro
Nicole Calabro is an artist, visual culture writer, intersectional feminist, and living millennial stereotype. A twenty-something Brooklyn-based Hudson Valley native, she is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in visual arts at the State University of New York at New Paltz. As an artist, she explores the intersections of feminist millennial life: how her generation navigates social justice through contemporary visual culture utilizing painting, drawing, printmaking, and embroidery. As a writer, she loves analyzing visual culture such as art, film, the Internet, and the media through an intersectional lens, and connecting it to everyday contemporary life.
View her work on nicolecalabro.wordpress.com or find her on Twitter and Instagram @nicole_m_cal
Copy Editor
Camille Frigillana
Camille hails from Los Angeles, CA, where she was born and raised. She has a B.A. in Journalism and is currently working at a beauty company as a copywriter along with being an editor here at The Femme Oasis. When she’s not correcting people’s grammar, you can find Camille eating at Disneyland, listening to her Spotify party jamzz playlist too loud, or binge watching Anthony Bourdain on Netflix.
Copy Editor
Sumaita Hasan
Sumaita Hasan is a sophomore at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. She plans to pursue a double major in English and Music and a minor in Film. She enjoys singing and watching movies (especially horror).
Copy Editor
Shacara Ledbetter
Shacara is a detail enthusiast and fierce expressionist. Together these attributes thrive as the foundation for the fruit of her creativity. As a wearer of many hats, her sole devotion is to help people help themselves. She's a DIY aficionado that believes some things are best done when you do them for yourself, instead of waiting for things to be done for you.
Copy Editor
Samantha Mitchell
Samantha is a senior at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign majoring in sociology with a minor in English. She serves as editing director for The Academic, an online zine that focuses on issues concerning student life, academia, and mental health. On campus, Samantha is involved with Alpha Kappa Delta, the national honors society for sociology. This semester, she is interning through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) and instructs a section of LAS 101, a class designed to help first-year students Liberal Arts and Science students acclimate to university life. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing, and drawing.
Copy Editor
Annie Monge
Annie grew up in South Gate and Cudahy, California where she learned and perfected her skills in people-watching. These skills have served her well in life, as she enjoys using all that she observed in her work. These observations have also helped her understand many things, including, her Salvadoran parents, why the voice in her head is louder than the one she attempts to speak with, and her obsession with stories.
Copy Editor
Megan Noone
Megan Noone is an almost college grad from the suburbs of Chicago. She’s the oldest of four girls, and the shortest of them too. When she’s not writing queer feminist fantasy, she’s crocheting while listening to true crime podcasts with her dog snuggling next to her.
Copy Editor
Mia Pidlaoan
Mia Pidlaoan is currently working on her B.A. in English at Northern Illinois University. During her time at community college, she held the role of secretary in the feminist club, Womyn 4 Womyn, as well as a role as editor in the creative writing club’s “Horizons,” the college’s literary magazine. Her hobbies include reading fiction novels, watching anime, and being the best person she can be.
Copy Editor
Almudena Rincon
Almudena is a senior from Madrid, Spain at Loyola University Chicago studying Journalism and English. In her three years at Loyola, she has been involved with various news organizations, writing, editing, and telling stories that give a voice to those who haven't been given one before. When she's not writing or editing articles, Almudena is drinking tea, going on road trips, studying French and Chinese or writing stories about her semester abroad in Beijing.
Copy Editor
Tess Rosinsky
Tess is so excited to be a copy editor for The Femme Oasis! She supports the values, mission, and work that The Femme Oasis promotes. In the past, she has volunteered at a nonprofit by being the editor of the E-newsletter. Tess has a Master’s Degree in Technical Writing and Information Design, and her professional writing focuses on healthcare literacy. During her free time, she loves building muscles at the gym, watching tv game shows from the 1950s to 1980s, and exploring vegetarian restaurants and recipes.
Copy Editor
Etienne Smith
Born and raised in Atlanta, GA, Etienne has been a writer all her life, finding comfort in poetry, songwriting, and storytelling. Her journalism background and roots in the creative arts influence how she writes and how she reads. She joined The Femme Oasis team because she believes there is nothing more powerful than the voices of women. In her free time she enjoys singing, watching cartoons, and eating all the chocolate she can get her hands on.
Since my subjects have always been my sensations, my states of mind and the profound reactions that life has been producing in me, I have frequently objectified all this in figures of myself, which were the most sincere and real thing that I could do in order to express what I felt inside and outside of myself.
- Frida Kahlo
Head Graphic Designer
Utsah Pandey
Utsah Pandey is a graphic designer from Kathmandu, Nepal, currently living in Seattle, WA. She graduated from Knox College in 2018 with a BA in Studio Art and Design. She specializes in two-dimensional design, illustration and typography.
Graphic Designer
Kylie Akia
Kylie is a freelance illustrator currently residing in Chicago, IL. She studied Illustration and Business at the Savanah College of Art and Design. Her creative work aims to uplift and represent minorities in a way that challenges stereotypes in the current social climate. You can view her work at kylieakia.com.
Graphic Designer
Carolina Alatriste
Carolina was born and raised in the south side of Chicago. She recently graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a Bachelor of design in graphic Design. She's currently trying to figure out how to survive life after college.
Graphic Designer
Natashna Anderson
Natashna is a current undergrad at SAIC, studying Illustration, Graphic Design as well as Fine Arts. She likes her coffee iced, her personality strong and her confidence very, very high.
Graphic Designer
Rachel Bishop
Rachel Bishop is a junior at Ohio University studying interactive media design. She plans to minor in computer science and enjoys taking additional courses in strategic communication and political science. Her extracurricular activities include being the public relations chair for Blue Pencil Comedy, being a cast member on Friday’s Live, and producing The Women’s Comedy Show. She enjoys cooking, hiking, gardening, and fully justified text.
Graphic Designer
Grace Bulabula
Grace Bulabula is a 22 year old born in Congo, Kinshasa. She's passionate about art in general and would like to run an advertising company in the future.
Graphic Designer
Bell Favakeh
Bell Favakeh is an artist and designer with a passion for painting and studio art. As a graphic designer for The Femme Oasis, Bell strives to use their art to empower femmes and women and help them find a voice. Bell is pursuing a B.F.A at Savannah College of Art and Design, and currently resides in Chicago, Illinois.
Graphic Designer
Shanelle Jacobs
Shanelle Jacobs is a creative artist working in photography, graphic design and writing. Her passion for different art forms help her create and inspire her work.
Graphic Designer
Anna Warfield
Anna Warfield is a recent graduate of Cornell University where she obtained a B.F.A. and a B.S. in Communication with a concentration in Media Studies. This eco-friendly product of upstate New York can be found, coffee cup in hand ordering a cappuccino in the nearest not-Starbucks. She nurtures a passion for the arts, culture, and the intricacies of identity. As a practicing artist, her work, which centers on themes of femininity and the body, can be viewed at annawarfield.com.
Graphic Designer
Elicelly Meléndez
Focused on branding, typography, and layout & composition, Elicelly Meléndez is a graphic designer and collage artist, who, influenced by science fiction, psychedelia, and surrealism makes collections of different materials to create exclusive and unique elements. Eager to expand her acquired knowledge and Keen to strive as a professional artist.
Graphic Designer
Carolina Malagamba
Carolina is a Mexican-German artist whose main media are embroidery on paper, collage, and book-art. When she is not working on her art she is in the kitchen making up new recipes. In the past 10 years, she has lived in 4 different countries. She has lots of love for all things animal print, books, museums, plants and for great design.
Graphic Designer
Nelsa Richardson
Nelsa Richardson is a melting pot of ethnicity. She was raised in a Thai, Puerto Rican, and black household and is very proud of her many cultures. She graduated from Saint Peter's University with a BA in Graphic Design. She loves to paint and create illustrations for her Webtoon comic "Caroline." When not working on her art, she enjoys playing with her cat, watching K-dramas, and taking short walks to the fridge.