Today we’d like to introduce you to Kaseba Chibweth.
Hi Kaseba, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I have always had a passion and love for a variety social justice issues and self-love from an early age, and it truly blossomed during high school when I took a course about that focused primarily on social justice issues during my sophomore year and a another course on Race, Class, and Gender in the United States during my junior year. It was during my junior year of high school (I attended the all-girls school in North Park, the Academy of Our Lady of Peace) that I applied for the University of San Diego’s Social Fabric Initiative of the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice (the goal of SFI was to build more connected communities by mobilizing youth to engineer creative solutions to real-world issues with their peers)summer internship and I got in! Each group of high school students was assigned a social justice issue that San Diego is facing, and the group that I got my first time was Human Sex Trafficking and our incredible mentor Aliza Amar, founder of Breaking the Silence Together, who helped to educate us on the topic due to her own first-hand experience. In order to help combat the issue we came up with an initiative that would help bring awareness to the youth of San Diego about the Human Sex Trafficking that is occurring in our backyard. Bringing awareness to things it what sparks conversations, conversations that ultimately lead to change. I ended up co-hosting the first SFI event at the end of the summer, which was an incredible opportunity. The following summer, I went back to SFI, and the topic my group got was Juvenile Justice Reform; it was that summer that the non-profit I co-founded, Youth for Juvenile Justice Reform, was born. It was through our journalistic 1:1 dialogue approach, advocacy panels, and partnerships with youth-led organizations across the nation that made our main goal to be presenting a narrative that reinforced the idea that a person is more than the crime that they committed. During that summer and beyond I was a part of interviewing individuals who were formerly incarcerated as juveniles to help share their stories and remove the stigma. I participated in quite a bit of panels regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion following that experience with the Social Fabric Initiative. I was honored to be a featured guest on The Inclusion 1st Podcast (The Inclusion 1st Podcast is creating a safe space for people to ask their most important questions on antiracism. Our mission is to demystify the practice of antiracism through the experience of questions and stories, which we hope will encourage antiracist learning, growth, and action. We believe that it is the actions of individuals that help to push this movement forward) where I got to answer some of the people’s most burning questions about anti-racism. I was then approached with the opportunity to be an interviewer for a college edition of the podcast where I got to interview my peers on a variety of topics, which was highly informative and fun. It was a great opportunity to showcase how invested young people are in creating change in their everyday lives. My high school has this annual conference called the BeYOUtiful conference that focuses on empowering young women through love, confidence, and awareness. Where I had I the honor of being a small group leader throughout my entire four years. It’s not only important to me that young girls see the value in showing up in your life as your truth and authentic self but for everyone to see just how beautiful life is and can be when you learn to prioritize you. Social media plays such a huge role in distorting people’s perception of reality that it is crucial for young people to be confident and content with themselves. Regardless of how difficult it may be at times; I will always make the choice to use my voice and I encourage others to do the same. Public Speaking has always been a huge part of my life; there’s nothing that I love more than talking to groups of people about the things I am passionate about and the things that matter in this world. I have a won a couple of speech competitions, one of them being the Rotary Four Way Test.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
For the most part, it has been a smooth road but of course, there were a few bumps in the road. Finding solutions to complex issues was challenging but not impossible. Finding the right words to say at times was also difficult. I was met with some hateful remarks along the way, but it was and never will be enough to knock me down. The world is constantly moving so it was important for me to keep up with what’s new and trending while juggling my own life. In order to reach people, you have to be able to communicate in the ways that they would be able to understand. Sometimes, people were a bit skeptical because of my age, but I always prevailed, and they always came around.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am known for my public speaking and leadership skills. I am post proud of my work done for Youth for Juvenile Justice and for always speaking about the things that need to be spoken about, hosting an incredible podcast, and giving back to communities that are underprivileged. Being able to bring awareness to a sector of society that is just not being talked about enough will always me one of my favorite accomplishments. I spoke on an anti-racism panel with former San Diego Chief of Police Shelley Zimmerman. Presenting at the Team ENOUGH CA Lobbying Collective’s Criminal Justice Reform and Gun Violence Prevention Webinar was also a highlight of mine this year. What sets me apart from others is my ability to lead from the heart, adapt to any circumstance, and optimistic approach to everything that I do.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
1) Don’t lose sight of your passions and dreams; you have what it takes to change the world.
2) Slow down and take time for self-reflection. It’s okay to shift your priorities.
3) It’s not anything new, but after losing a dear friend during Covid-19, it put into perspective how important it is to spend time with the people you love. Live your life in color, and do not take anything or anyone for granted. It’s always the little things that matter the most.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaseba_chibweth
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaseba-chibweth-32124515b/
Image Credits
Robyn Scherer Photography
Max Pippel
Kennedy Mallory
