Maya Patel is a community organizer, activist, and writer based in Portland who specializes in intersectionality within alternative lifestyle communities. With a background in sociology and extensive work with BIPOC and LGBTQ+ organizations, Maya brings critical yet hopeful perspectives to venue reviews.

Having visited over 100 venues with a focus on how they serve—or fail—marginalized communities, Maya's reviews address issues of accessibility, representation, cultural competency, and genuine inclusion versus tokenism. Her work holds spaces accountable while celebrating those doing genuine equity work.

Maya's writing has been featured in Bitch Media, Colorlines, and academic journals. She believes that alternative lifestyle spaces can be laboratories for creating more just, equitable communities—when they're willing to do the work and learn from their mistakes.