Arabella is the oldest out of 2 siblings. She was born and raised in San Jose, CA. Her father, who passed away when she was 8 years old due to addiction and alcoholism, was also born and raised in San Jose and her mother was born in Iran and moved to California when she was 10 years old. Arabella first encountered the system when she was a child and her father was in and out of jail. After a rough childhood, addiction at an early age and a lot of problems with her mental health, she was then incarcerated herself at the age of 13 and was in and out of Juvenile Hall and the James Ranch until she was 17 years old. She experienced all the negative things that come with being involved in the system including negative judgement, being criminalized by police, losing family/friends to the system, losing her teenage years to the system, etc. She was on juvenile probation for nearly 5 years before it was terminated just 2 months before turning 18. Since, Arabella has not had any interactions with police and is very involved with the Young Women’s Freedom Center and helping her community. She completed the Siblings on the Rise internship and is now starting the When Young Moms Thrive fellowship as she is expecting in April 2022.
“I am super excited to be a part of this fellowship. I really look forward to working with other young moms in my community and helping them advocate for their needs. I think this is a great opportunity and something that has been needed for a while.“
