Gorgui Sy Dieng, one of the best defensive players in the National Basketball Association (NBA), is unfortunately not participating in the 2017 playoffs. Gorgui Dieng was born in the coastal Kebemer district of Senegal; since 2013, he has been a part of the Minnesota Timberwolves, a team that did not have a stellar 2016-2017 season,…
As a co-founder of two groundbreaking startups, Marie Githinji is using technology to change the world. Githinji knew she wanted to pursue tech from a fairly young age, certainly before she had any awareness that it wasn’t a typical path for a girl. Once she got into the field and started working as…
Since its release in April 2016, Beyoncé’s album Lemonade has been making waves. Along with the accompanying 60-minute film, the album received widespread critical acclaim. A Rolling Stone reviewer called the ambitious album a confirmation of Queen Bey’s “superhero status” and “emotionally extreme.” A year later, Beyoncé is adding to the buzz around her groundbreaking visual album with the…
In 2015, she owned the runway, and broke down barriers for other black models to go natural with their kinks and curls. From a quiet town in Angola, where she was raised by her sister and studying to become a doctor, Borges’ life took her down a different path. After participating in the Angolan edition of the Elite…
There was a time when the Syrian Arab Republic was not the site of an out-of-control civil war where government forces carry out chemical weapon attacks against civilians, and where an abominable terrorist organization has set out to destroy rich archaeological treasures dating back several centuries. Less than a decade ago, Syria was a country…
With nearly 39 million mobile phone subscriptions and a device penetration of almost 90 percent, Kenya could be described as one of the most wireless nations not just in Africa, but also in the world. Kenya is not only a global leader in smartphone usage, but also in development of mobile technologies. At any given time,…
A UN-Sponsored Organization In 1997, the United Nations helped several organizations combine their resources to found the African Women’s Alliance (“the AWA”). This international nonprofit enterprise draws upon the talents of African women residing in their own nations and across the world. It was incorporated in 2001 as a nonprofit organization. Its members hope to enhance the lives…
Esi Edugyan is an award-winning novelist whose cultural heritage and diverse education fuels her rich stories of history, race, and finding one’s place in the world. Born in 1977 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Edugyan began writing poetry as a teenager and her talents were soon recognized by a high school teacher. She started her…
In late 2016, Fadumo Dayib made history when she announced her candidacy for the presidential elections of Somalia, thus marking the first time a female politician aspired to the highest office of the troubled nation. Dayib was not in Somalia at the time of the announcement, which she made from Finland—the nation that welcomed her…
Israeli musician Idan Raichel blends styles to share music with a message of peace. A keyboardist, singer-songwriter, and composer, his music draws from Middle Eastern, Latin American, and African musical styles. His lyrics are almost always in Hebrew and he often uses bits of traditional Hebrew texts. LA Times described what Raichel does as creating “a zesty…
