My name is Brittany Cruz-Fejeran and I'm a visual journalist based in San Diego, CA. I lived on Guam my whole life until I moved out to California in 2016 to pursue a better education. My passion for journalism comes from the lack of representation for the CHamoru and Guamanian people of the Mariana Islands. This missing narrative had a significant impact on my confidence as a young Indigenous woman. 

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Journalism taught me that my point of view is essential to underrepresented communities, being part of one myself. Through a Solutions Journalism lens I was able to find answers to my own identity as an Indigenous person and feel empowered by my ability to tell stories of my people and others. 

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I've covered issues on asylum seekers, deaf representation, LGBTQIA narratives and events, CHamoru solidarity in San Diego, recovery in Lahaina, Maui and much more. 

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While at San Diego State University, I was the photo editor of the Daily Aztec, a consistent staff writer and photographer, founding member of the Asian American Journalists Association SDSU Chapter, brought our chapter to Lahaina, Maui to speak with survivors of the fire, raised funds for the 2023 Associate Collegiate Press Convention in San Francisco, freelanced for multiple news organizations including inewsource, CalMatters and the San Diego Union-Tribune and have mentored many students along the way. 

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As a recent graduate of SDSU, my goal is to continue to cover the CHamoru community in San Diego. This city has the largest concentration of CHamorus and Guamanian people in the entire country. It even outnumbers Guam's population. CHamoru groups in San Diego are a part of a huge effort to revitalize the Indigenous CHamoru culture that was smothered to nearly nothing from 600 years of continued colonization. Their stories continue to be overlooked by mainstream media. I will do my part in documenting this movement.