Culture Is Not Neutral: Meet Nail Day Volunteer Danica Hu

This is Danica Hu, who has been one of our core Nail Day volunteer for ten months. Danica has a tremendous heart for justice and caring for the marginalized. Shortly after moving to the city, she expressed her concern for people experiencing homelessness, and a friend got her in touch with our Nail Day team.

“If there’s anything I’ve learned in life,” says Danica, “it’s to do what grows your capacity to love and empathize. BJM’s Nail Day expands me because it’s not about me.”

Danica sees Nail Day as a way to give back to a city where “taking” is the norm, which has led to gentrification and visible homelessness.

“We are being formed by the city,” says Danica. “Culture is not neutral. Culture is bending, shaping, molding us. So what kinds of people are we becoming? Are our hearts growing more callous, or more compassionate? I love Nail Day because it’s counter-cultural to the transient, efficient, fast-paced, tech-bubble lifestyle, yet it’s extraordinarily joyful and life-giving.”

Nail Day allows women to relax and take a deep breath in a safe and caring environment. One of her favorite Nail Day moments is when a lady needing rest felt safe enough to take a nap in our space. Life on the streets is exhausting, so it’s a privilege to foster a space for women to set their literal and figurative baggage aside for a few hours.

“Nail Day is all about loving women in the Tenderloin as human beings, not human doings,” says Danica. “Attention is the purest form of generosity.”

Are you passionate about giving back to the community here? Nail Day happens the second Saturday of every month, coming up next on November 9th! Sign up here, or reach out to volunteer@becausejusticematters.org for more info.