La Defensa

Megan Castillo (she/her)

“This work is deeply personal to me. I’ve seen loved ones harmed by policy decisions made without our voices at the table, and I’ve felt the heartbreak of watching my community continuously overlooked and underfunded. Growing up in under-resourced neighborhoods, I witnessed how opaque and inequitable budget decisions caused lasting harm. That’s why I’m committed to transforming the system, so that the people most impacted by injustice have the real power to decide how resources are allocated and shape a future rooted in care, equity, and accountability.”

Megan Castillo is a seasoned community organizer and policy advocate working at the intersection of public safety, budget justice, and community empowerment in Los Angeles County. As a leader in the movement to divest from incarceration and reinvest in care, Megan plays a key role in stewarding nearly $800 million in public resources through the Care First Community Investment (CFCI) initiative. Her work includes advancing participatory budgeting, coordinating grassroots coalitions, and holding local governments accountable to equity-centered policy-making. She has been featured in prominent media outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Spectrum News, KTLA, LA Public Press, The Progressive, the Los Angeles Sentinel, and others. Currently, Megan is the Policy and Advocacy Manager at La Defensa. She has earned her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Southern California and her B.A in Psychology and African American studies from Loyola Marymount University.