Rokhaya – ROKMYWORLD – Rokhaya Diallo

11/12/2017

Obama wants to inspire a new generation of young activists

Barack et Michelle Obama at the inauguration of the Obama Foundation, Thursday, October 31st octobre in Chicago. Photo Jim Young. AFP

A-listers in Chicago for the launch of the Obama Foundation. There was but one French woman among the five hundred guests, the activist, essayist and journalist, Rokhaya Diallo. She shared her impressions with LIBERATION. ” When i asked myself after the presidency how could i have an impact. When i asked myself after…turning 56. It’s not too late you can still have an impact.” This question doesn’t come from just any early retiree but from he who, not so long ago, was president of the number one world power. Barack Obama organized the first meeting of the Chicago Youth Leadership Summit of…

08/01/2017

Happy New Year!

16/11/2016

[VIDEO] My TEDx Talk “Don’t try to fit in: make the world embrace who you are”

Last month, I had the pleasure to be invited to take part of Tedx UBIWilz. Here are the thoughts I shared with the audience: How do you deal with the fact of not fitting to the norm? When you’re black and live in a world designed for men and white people? When you don’t look French enough although you feel every inch Parisian? How do you make the world acknowledge who you are? THE VIDEO IS BELOW

23/07/2016

In France just like in the U.S. #BlackLivesMatter #AdamaTraoré

Picture taken during the protest in New York on July juillet 9 2016 (c) Rokhaya Diallo

I’ve been in the U.S. for the past few weeks and it was here that I was shocked to learn of the death of young Adama Traore while in police custody in Beaumont sur Oise. According to the official version, he succumbed to a heart malfunction. His family and friends deny this strenuously. His own mother insists he has never suffered with any cardiac problems and his sister states that her “brother was killed by the police”. His family has yet to see his body. Adama Traore was a Black man. While the eyes of the world have been riveted…

09/05/2016

I finally saw the Broadway play, Eclipsed.

I finally saw the Broadway play, Eclipsed. Written by actress, Danai Gurira (seen in The Walking Dead and Mother of George, Andrew Dosunmu’s dazzling film) and directed by Liesl Tommy, the play tells the story of the Liberian Civil War from the perspective of five women. After its successful run at the Public Theater, the play opened at the Golden Theater. Not only is this the first time in Broadway history that women entirely run a production, but it is run by Black women. This season, it is also the only new play written by a woman. Oscar winner Lupita…

06/05/2016

I was at Nate Parker’s sensational Stanford event

“This film isn’t about endurance, or resilience. This film is about resistance.” Those are the words Nate Parker used to describe his film The Birth of a Nation, winner of both the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at Sundance. During a stopover in Palo Alto, I took a side trip to Stanford where the African and African American Studies Department was hosting its annual St. Clair Drake Memorial Lecture. The guest speaker was Nate Parker, first seen a few years ago with Denzel Washington in The Great Debaters. He came to screen his first full-length film and present his…

29/03/2016

BET HONORS – I WAS THERE!

I had the pleasure of covering the 2016 BET HONORS Ceremony for BET. Traditionally, the ceremony is held in February, Black History Month. But snowzilla hit, pushing it into March. BET HONORS began in 2008 to recognize African Americans who excel in such varied fields as business, entertainment, film or public service. This year’s awards went to: Lee Daniels (TV and Film) – Director of The Butler, among others and creator of the hit TV series, Empire; Eric Holder (Public Service) – former US Attorney General; Mellody Hobson (Corporate Citizen); Patti LaBelle (Music Arts) – iconic singer with over 50…

21/02/2016

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT IN “SELFIE MODE” FOR BET

It’s official. I’m exporting myself across the Atlantic for BET BUZZ, the daily magazine show I host with RAPHAL and HEDIA. Now no one will miss any breaking news from the States! As your network correspondent in the US, I’ll keep you posted on goings-on in the heart of African American culture and will bring you exclusives on the biggest events through reports from New York, interviews and conferences, like for example, the one I took part in at the iconic Apollo Theater in Harlem. I’ll also take you inside the BET Studios in Washington and backstage at the network’s…

23/01/2016

Panel at the Apollo Theater / WNYC’s MLK Event : Race and Privilege: Exploring MLK’s Two Americas

On Sunday January 17, MLK DAY, I was invited by WYNC (New York Public radio) to participate in an intense panel discussion about the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the iconic Apollo Theater in Harlem. Dr Eddie Glaude, Jr, , Ph.D. – Author and Chair of Princeton University’s African-American Studies Department and Taylor Branch – Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author and historian best known for his award-wining trilogy of books chronicling the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement, were among the panelists. AT the standing room only event, our moderator, Brian Lehrer, asked each…

27/10/2015

Afro! My new book: making the cover

For the past few months, you have been able to follow a Tumblr describing the development of a project initially called Mon Pari(s) Afro, authored by me with photography by Brigitte Sombié. Our idea was to publish 100 photos of Parisians, whether residents or visitors, of various origins, who have all chosen to wear their hair natural. The final title is Afro! and Editions Arenes is launching it on November 4. We were undecided about the cover photo but my editor came up with the idea to have Brigitte photograph me and use my head shot as the cover. Taking…

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