This story is an excerpt that explores the effects gentrification can have on a community and its foundational members. Clem has been living in this neighborhood forever, and it suddenly changes before her eyes.
Story
Shermaya Paul
Mentee
Shermaya Paul is a sophomore who lives in Brooklyn. She was the valedictorian of her middle school and the winner of the Congressional App Challenge. She is also an alumni of the UN Junior Ambassador program. She is a talented artist and she likes to write.
Favorite Genres/Mediums
Artist‘s Statement
I write based on what I see and hear around me. My surroundings heavily inspire my work. When I am thinking about what to write next I take the things I’ve heard and seen and begin to draft characters and conflicts as they live in the worlds I’ve created. I love mysterious and thrilling stories, so that is what I try to emulate through my writing. I like small details that you have to think about for them to make sense, and stories that end with cliffhangers opening up room for discussion.
Story
Harlem: The Black Flowering
A visual representation of the Harlem Renaissance or the New Negro Movement. The growth of black music, art, and community through the many vessels of hands that watered it.
Story
The Pearl Of My Eye
After finding her grandmother’s pearl necklace, Roman’s life seems to turn upside down. Given the chance to fix everything, will she make it in just the nick of time, or remain stuck forever?