Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
NPR News

Lee Mokobe: How Can We Make Sense Of Ourselves Through Poetry?

Listen 12:30
Listen to the Story

Part 4 of TED Radio Hour Episode The Artist's Voice

How can art be a tool to better understand ourselves and the world around us? Poet Lee Mokobe shares what it was like to grow up trans in South Africa, and how language can be a tool for change.

About Lee Mokobe

Lee Mokobe is a slam poet based in South Africa. Their writing tackles social justice issues and explores LGBTQ identities through the lens of a Black transgender immigrant in America.

Mokobe is also the co-founder of the youth arts education group Vocal Revolutionaries, for which they received the inaugural Adobe Creative Catalyst Award and the Awesome Foundation Grantee. The volunteer-run organization holds poetry and art workshops and motivational talks for South African youths.

Mokobe has performed all over the world included at the Barclay's Center, The LGBT Center, LA YouTube Space and Vidcon. Their work has been featured by The Fader, Al Jazeera, New York Public Library, Philly.com, Soulpancake media, OkayAfrica and Leeway Foundation.

This segment of TED Radio Hour was produced by Diba Mohtasham and edited by Sanaz Meshkinpour and Rachel Faulkner. You can follow us on Facebook @TEDRadioHour and email us at TEDRadioHour@npr.org.

Sponsored message

Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible donation today