Nyra joined The LP team as our Development Intern this month. Get to know more about her!
In what neighborhood do you live?
Morningside Heights
How did you first become connected to The LP, or hear about The LP?
Through the Athena Advocacy Institute at Barnard College
What is your favorite film?…album?…food?
Film: my guilty pleasure is “Why Did I Get Married?” Albums: Room 25 by noname and Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae Food: Sushi
Where do you do your laundry?
In the basement of my building
In your opinion, why does art matter?
Art ultimately provides the space for self and communal expression and can both be a creative space of healing, play or one of disruption. Art matters because it allows us to highlight and discuss archaic and novel topics in thought-provoking ways that go beyond essays or theories. Art opens up an entirely new world that is told through the perspective of the artist and can not only offer the different aspects of dealing with old or new topics, but it also paves the way for unique solutions.
What LP value do you most related to and why?
The LP value I most related to is “We Write Our Own Histories” because marginalized folks telling our own stories is a powerful tool to challenge oppressive, dangerous stereotypes and histories popularized in mainstream society. Telling our own histories connects us to them and to powerful figures that paved the way for us to be where we are now. Knowing and sharing our history is an empowering, change-making practice that underlines the joy, struggle and agency that is characteristic of our community.
Nyra Wise is from South Florida and is an incoming senior at Barnard College who’s working towards a B.A. in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. The work that she does focuses on the community around her at Barnard–Nyra is a Writing Fellow in her campus’s Writing Center and currently co-runs a podcast that caters towards young Black women navigating and reclaiming their pleasure. In her free time, Nyra can be found trying out new restaurants or daydreaming on Pinterest.