Hear Us Out

Safi, Aryaana, Minerva, Aaliyah, and Zubaida competed against 100 other teens to make the 2019 Urban Word NYC slam poetry team. Consisting of all young women of color, these poets use their words to express their unique identities and give insight to the struggles of growing up a woman in NYC. While the team dedicates their summer to rehearse in hopes of winning this years international poetry competition, the importance lies not in what place they come in, but rather the growth gained through expression. As the slam community puts it, “the point is the poetry”. 

Filmmakers

Akintunde (Tunde) Ahmad earned his BA in sociology from Yale University, and an MS in journalism and documentary from Columbia University. His work has been featured on a host of media outlets, including The Ellen Degeneres Show, Sway in the Morning, MSNBC, Huffington Post, MTV, Black Enterprise, and Jopwell, where he has written or spoken about gun violence, criminal justice, economic inequality, and education.

Tunde was born and raised in East Oakland, California, and currently resides in Harlem, New York. 

aa4245@columbia.edu