Cairah: Transforming Community Through Student-Lead Vocal Theater

Hear how Cairah used the ArtSmart Vocal Theater program to express her identity and heritage, and demand respect from her community.
Dec 24, 2023 ArtSmart

No one could pronounce Cairah’s name correctly. Some even made fun of it.

As one of the few Black girls at her middle school, Cairah felt disrespected. So when her ArtSmart Mentor Sarah asked her vocal theater group to come up with a topic for their original performance, Cairah new she wanted to talk about how saying someone’s name correctly shows respects for their identity and culture.

Cairah used the ArtSmart vocal theater program to teach her middle school how to say her name. Watch this video to hear Cairah’s story.

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