PD reporter Nashelly Chavez: When I felt out of place as an immigrant, family and writing helped me connect

Throughout 2021, our Press Democrat newsroom has seen numerous changes. We’ve welcomed new staffers from markets around the country to fill vacancies, while also assigning existing reporters to new beats or areas of coverage. These moves are focused on one goal: Being an even more essential source of local news for Sonoma County readers.

To better acquaint you with those who pursue and produce the stories you read daily, we’re launching today a new occasional series. “Behind the Byline” introduces you to those who write stories, snap photos, design pages and edit the content we deliver in our print editions and on pressdemocrat.com. We’re more than journalists. As you’ll see, we’re also your neighbors with unique backgrounds and experiences who proudly call Sonoma County home.

Today, we introduce you to Nashelly Chavez, our diversity, equity and inclusion reporter.

Enjoy getting to know our staff, and thanks, as always for reading.

Richard A. Green, executive editor

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I’ve never really liked Hot Tamales, the chewy, cinnamon-flavored confection I managed to avoid for most of my childhood.

So, when my sixth-grade teacher asked me to bring Hot Tamales to a class celebration, my mind immediately went to the tamales I’ve always loved; the ones made of steamed corn dough filled with delicious meats and wrapped in corn husks.

On the day of the party, as the other students in my class carried in bags of Skittles, Starbursts and M&Ms, my mom and I showed up with a fresh batch of handmade tamales.

The other students’ eager bites into the individually wrapped delights signaled to me that no one was really upset about the substitution.

This misunderstanding was just one of many cultural missteps I’ve made as an immigrant to this country. And in talking with other people, I’ve learned I’m not alone. Everyone has made these kinds of mistakes.

It’s those types of shared experiences that I want to highlight as The Press Democrat’s diversity, equity and inclusion reporter, a job I took on in April after nearly three years covering public safety and crime in our region.

I see my job as writing about people, groups, viewpoints, lifestyles, experiences and topics that reflect all of our community, and show the intersections of race, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, ability and economic status.

That deep understanding of the various people who live here, told through their perspectives, offers up an opportunity for connection, growth and inspiration and challenges those who consider diversity a dirty word.

Much of my personal interest in this topic has to do with my own upbringing.

I moved to Petaluma with my parents and younger sister from Mexico when I was 4 years old.

As an adult, I’m grateful to identify with both cultures — the one I inherited from my parents and the one we adopted by moving north. But, I would be lying if I said the road wasn’t sometimes bumpy.

There was the time I learned about the significance of the middle finger in American culture. I had shown a kid who I went to daycare with a newly lodged splinter in my finger only for him to immediately report me to the nearest adult. (Sorry!)

In elementary school, I struggled with the intricacies of the English language. This dilemma, it seems, was sufficient enough fodder for my native-speaker classmates to tease me whenever the words I had formed in my head didn’t come out of my mouth quite how I had intended.

There were also incidents of covert racism, such as the time a customer at the candy store I worked in spoke to me with disdain for seemingly no reason, only to have a pleasant conversation with a co-worker minutes later.

The woman had no idea my co-worker, who had green eyes and lighter skin than mine, was my cousin whom I’d recruited to the job.

Whenever I’ve felt the most out of place in my life, I’ve always turned to my family.

My father is one of 13 siblings, most of whom live in Sonoma County. Our numbers meant family gatherings were crowded.

Relatives squeezed onto couches, around dining room tables and kitchen counter tops, while the youngest children roamed the backyard or made seats out of staircase steps.

Part of what bonds us has to do with our shared responsibility to help one another, a core value my paternal grandmother instilled in her children from a young age, before they passed that on to their own children.

That ideal grew stronger as my relatives slowly migrated from Mexico to the U.S. My aunts and uncles leaned on each other to find housing, jobs and care for their kids.

I found belonging again in 2013, when I walked into my first college newsroom during my second year at the Santa Rosa Junior College.

The Oak Leaf headquarters on the far west edge of the campus barely had enough space for every person enrolled in the class. The drop ceiling was dotted with holes made by pens student journalists had repeatedly slung upward until they embedded in the Styrofoam-like material of the acoustic panels.

There, I grew confident in my writing, despite being self-conscious about how I spoke and wrote in English for most of my life.

The work we did also helped me build stronger connections with the campus itself.

It is that link — that need for a deeper understanding of the communities that I report on and the people who live in them — that has continued to grow in my professional career.

Interviewing and writing about people from seemingly disparate backgrounds has almost always evoked my deep respect for the circumstances that have shaped their lives.

Their stories have also helped me piece together a more accurate picture of the world that we live in today.

I hope the stories I write as part of my new beat, which explores issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, help us make changes today that will shape our future. And, I hope they help us to understand what’s at stake if we don’t include diverse people, diverse experiences and diverse thoughts in those conversations.

You can reach Staff Writer Nashelly Chavez at 707-521-5203 or nashelly.chavez@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @nashellytweets.

Five Things to Know About Nashelly Chavez

1. It’s pronounced “Nuh-shell-ee.”

2. I have a 16-year-old miniature schnauzer/ cairn terrier mix named Tati who is my best friend.

3. My favorite breakfast meal is chilaquiles, a traditional Mexican dish that involves fried tortilla chips, a warm, spicy salsa and eggs.

4. I’ve worked at The Press Democrat for three years and covered public safety and crime prior to switching to my new beat in April.

5. You can call me at 707-521-5203, email me at nashelly.chavez@pressdemocrat.com or find me on Twitter at @nashellytweets.