Poppy Liu is Queer and Asian — Get Used to It!

Poppy Liu is bringing her identity as a migrant queer person of the Asian diaspora into art and entertainment., which is why we're happy to call her one of The Advocate's Champions of Pride.

The 28-year-old first generation Chinese-American actress from Queens, N.Y., has used her talent to champion important issues on and off-screen. And she's only just begun.

Liu currently stars as Mistress Yin, a queer dominatrix in Manhattan, in the upcoming Margaret Cho-produced web series, Mercy Mistress, based on Yin Q's memoir. She's also the creative director of the production company, Collective Sex, a rising media company producing thought-provoking and insightful content across all mediums.

The bilingual, classically trained artist is also a doula, which is someone who provides physical, emotional, and logistical support for people through the birth process. Liu offers free doula services to women of color and queer trans people of color, and in the last year, between acting work, she's supported five people through the birth process. She considers them her greatest accomplishments in the last year.

"There is no one else who can do the work of us liking and believing in ourselves," she says. "There may come a time when other people start believing in you too, but there will honestly be far more times when you are alone in your solitude fighting yourself and during those times it's important to remind yourself that you are a unique and important being whose voice deserves to be in the world, and that it is worth it and possible to pursue your dreams."