A graduate of University of California, Los Angeles in mathematics, Uyematsu became active in Asian American Studies in the late sixties.
Modeled after the Black Power movement, it too emphasized racial pride, economic empowerment, and the creation of political and cultural institutions for Asian American people in the United States.
Uyematsu was a public high school math teacher for 32 years, and in the 1990s she began publishing her poetry.
[4] Her poetry reflects her Japanese American heritage and continues to address issues of racism and social inequities.
The Poetry Foundation states, “Uyematsu’s poems consider the intersection of politics, mathematics, spirituality, and the natural world.”[5] In 2012 she was recognized by the Friends of Little Tokyo Branch Library for her writing contributions to the Japanese-American community.