#amber mccrary

After an extended hiatus, my zine wife Amber and I are happy to report that our Etsy store is back open! Also, after much labor, printing snafus, and other unforeseen mishaps, our 4th issue in the Native American Feminist Musings series is now available: Empower Yoself Before You Wreck Yoself #2! This issue includes: my first ever comic featuring Rez Cat taking on #NoDapl, an interview with Cecely Todacheenie about being a skating badass, plus lots of poetry, artwork, photography, short stories and more. Also, thank you to all of the wonderful ladies who submitted and were willing to share their vulnerabilities and strengths with us. Tatum Bowie, Kogee Clark, Jessica Gonzales, Bree Manson, Erica S. Qualy and Eryn Wise, sending you all much love and light. Amber and I are also happy to announce that our zines are now available in eBook format which are easily downloadable. But if you’re old-school and still prefer a paper copy, we have those available in black and white with a free button to boot. And lastly, this zine is dedicated to those at Standing Rock, the Attawapiskat youth and the missing and murdered Indigenous women of Canada. Happy Galentine’s Day! Ahehee’!

Abalone Mountain Press comes from the Diné name for the Peaks in Flagstaff, McCrary said.

“Abalone Shell Mountain is one of the four sacred mountains for Diné,” McCrary said on her GoFundMe page. She said in an interview that the mountain is sacred to the Hopi, as well.

McCrary was born in Tuba City, Arizona. Her mother is from Shonto, Arizona and her dad is from Hardrock, Arizona. McCrary moved to Flagstaff when she was seven years old and lived there until she was about 20 years old.

“I spent most of my adolescent years in Flag and it really informed who I was as a person, especially artistic wise,” McCrary said.

After many laborious months, I’m proud to say that Amber McCrary and I have finally completed our second zine! This time around, we’ve decided to call our latest feminist endeavor The Nizhóní Beat, nizhóní meaning “beautiful” in the Navajo language/Diné bizaad. Although we’ve changed the name, our message remains much the same. Like the woman on the cover, we’re here to encourage every Native Woman to get down with her bad self and dance to her own beautiful beat! In this issue, we have some really great contributions from Saylor Alex, Tamara Seaton and fellow zinester Going Places. We’re selling them for $4 each on #Etsy but are open to zine swaps as well. Please feel free to share and ahéhee’ for taking the time to read this post!