Samuel Getachew

Award-Winning Poet

@samuelgd 

Poetry should be heard, not just read, and to hear 16-year-old AExME Council member Samuel Getachew perform his poetry is to believe in the power of words. “The role of the artist is to make the revolution irresistible,” says the Oakland, Ca,. resident, who we dare you to try to resist, quoting the artist Toni Cade Bambara.

The Ethiopian-American high school student’s poetry about gun violence, the immigrant experience, and racial injustice have garnered over half a million views online and landed his strong, vulnerable words in news outlets including NPR and the New York Times. In addition to co-founding his high school’s student activism club and serving as features editor of his school paper, Samuel is the 2018 Oakland Vice Poet Laureate and the Youth Speaks Teen Poetry Slam Grand Slam Champion… for 2017 and 2018!

@samuelgd 

You’d think speaking at events with Zendaya (nbd) and members of Congress and the Senate (uh, kinda a big deal) would be life achievements unlocked for Samuel. But he swears his proudest moment came at a recent open mic night when he realized his poetry is inspiring other people to find and use their own voices. A girl who’d never before read her work in public shared that seeing Samuel perform his poetry inspired her to share her writing.

“In that moment I realized I’m not just saying words to open space. When I perform there are people watching and it actually is changing people’s lives.”

Samuel looks up to Barack Obama and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, he says, but his biggest role model is none other than the Queen herself, Beyoncé:

“The way that she creates for herself without really worrying about what repercussions are going to come of it or what people think, that inspires me a lot.”

Meet all the members of the AExME Council here.

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The Buddy Project

The Buddy Project

THE BUDDY PROJECT This Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re shining a light on the Buddy Project, a suicide and self-harm prevention nonprofit created by AExME Council member Gabby Frost. As Gabby says, “1 in 5 people have a mental illness, but 5 in 5 people have mental health. Mental health matters for everyone.” Whether you’re dealing […] SEE MORE
Schuyler Bailar

Schuyler Bailar

A recent graduate of Harvard University and tireless advocate for inclusion, Schuyler is the first transgender athlete to compete in any sport on an NCAA Division 1 men’s team. By 15, he was one of the nation’s top-20 15-year-old breast-strokers and by 17, he set a national age-group record. Follow Schuyler: “When we ask companies for […] SEE MORE
Peyton Klein

Peyton Klein

A high school student in Pittsburgh, Pa., Peyton is founder of the Global Minds Initiative – a for-youth, by-youth organization that combats cultural intolerance and discrimination in schools internationally. It is now in 25 schools in two countries, and impacts 2,600 students. Follow Peyton: “Our generation is in search of community. We are striving for […] SEE MORE