Marya was born in California to immigrant Indian parents. Her childhood was spent in the US, France, and India.[3] She attended the University of California San Diego, earning degrees in theater and molecular biology, before attending medical school at Georgetown University. It was during her residency at UCSF that she began writing and performing music.[4]
Activism
Marya has said her sense of justice was awakened in childhood as she witnessed class differences in India, and learned about colonization and genocide perpetrated against Native Americans in the United States.[5] She is involved in numerous organizations working at the intersection of social justice and health, including the Do No Harm Coalition[6] and Deep Medicine Circle.[7] She was recognized in 2021 with the Women Leaders in Medicine Award by the American Medical Student Association. She was a reviewer of the American Medical Association's Organizational Strategic Plan to Embed Racial Justice and Advance Health Equity. In 2019, Marya was among the physicians appointed by Governor Newsom to the Healthy California for All Commission.[8][9]
Marya has been vocal on social media as well as in her capacity as a medical professional regarding violations of Palestinian human rights.[10] After Dr. Avromi Kanal sent an email to hospital staff arguing against a cease-fire resolution, Marya publicly described this email as an "expression of anti-Arab hate" that prompted doctors of South Asian and North African descent "to say they do not feel safe in his presence."[11]
Medical student controversy
Rupa Marya, MD
@DrRupaMarya
Med students at UCSF are concerned that a first year student from Israel is in their class. They're asking if he participated in the genocide of Palestinians in the IDF before matriculating into medical school in CA. How do we address this in our professional ranks?
Marya was suspended from her role after challenging the presence of a first-year Israeli medical student at UCSF.[14][15][16] Marya faced backlash in the past for criticizing the impact of Zionism on health care, having described it as an "impediment to health equity" and a "supremacist, racist ideology".[11][10] Senator Scott Wiener and UCSF publicly labeled these posts as antisemitic, and UCSF suspended Marya due to "the targeting of students on social media based on their national origin".[17] Marya said that she was suspended because of her "support for the liberation of Palestinians who are suffering genocide", and maintained she was the victim of a targeted harassment campaign by pro-Israel groups.[18]
The university later reinstated her clinical care responsibilities while maintaining her ban from campus and the hospital.[19]
Rupa & the April Fishes' debut album, "Extraordinary Rendition", reflects on the societal impact of the September 11 attacks, while her subsequent album, "Este Mundo," draws from her interactions with undocumented immigrants facing severe health challenges.[23] In "Este Mundo," Rupa's lyrics explore themes of longing, loss, and love, maintaining a thoughtful and intimate perspective.[24] Her music incorporates influences from jazz, tango, klezmer, Latin American, and Balkan music.[25]
^Valdez, Jonah (2024-11-19). "San Francisco's Biggest Hospital System: Don't Talk About Palestine". The Intercept. Retrieved 2024-12-04. In her social media posts in January, Marya, an expert in decolonial theory, questioned the impacts of Zionism as "a supremacist, racist ideology" on health care and drew immediate criticism from pro-Israel colleagues and Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener.
^Valdez, Jonah (2024-11-19). "San Francisco's Biggest Hospital System: Don't Talk About Palestine". The Intercept. Retrieved 2024-12-04. The following month, the university placed her on paid leave and suspended her ability to practice medicine pending an investigation into the post. The university has since reinstated her ability to give clinical care, but she remains banned from campus, including the hospital where she worked.
^Gilbert, Andrew (2009-11-01). "A delicate balancing act". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-12-04. While her hit 2008 debut album, "Extraordinary Rendition," features songs written in response to the climate of fear following the Sept. 11 attacks, much of the material on "Este Mundo" flows from her experience caring for undocumented immigrants who ended up in the hospital with dire medical conditions.
^Gilbert, Andrew (2009-11-01). "A delicate balancing act". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-12-04. Judging from her new songs on "Este Mundo," Rupa has found a delicate balance. Rather than polemical broadsides detailing her position on immigration policy, her lyrics pose intimate questions exploring universal themes of longing, loss and love.
^Gilbert, Andrew (2009-11-01). "A delicate balancing act". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-12-04. Her evolving creative vision has won converts across the Bay Area's inventive acoustic music scene, attracting musicians steeped in jazz, tango, klezmer, Latin American and Balkan traditions.
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