Emily Lu Gao (she/they), or “Emdash,” is the queer daughter of Chinese immigrants. Currently she is a 2nd Year Poetry MFA candidate at Rutgers-Newark where she also teaches undergraduates. Her poetry has been performed at San Diego Art Institute and Historic Filipinotown LA; it also lives in Kissing Dynamite, The Agave Review, Queer Rain, and The Good Life Review. She graduated from Pitzer College majoring in Asian American Studies which serves as her “north star.” Her work aims to heal, grow and decolonize. When not writing, she hosts and organizes a monthly open mic at WORD Bookstore Jersey City.