For many people, the hijab has become a flash point for discussions of identity, faith and personal freedom. In reaction to stories that women are forced to wear the veil in many countries, it is not uncommon for Westerners to believe that the hijab is a symbol of oppression, and that a liberated woman would choose to unveil when given the choice.

When Sahar Shakeri came to the United States from Iran as a high school student, she struggled with the question of whether to continue the practice of wearing hijab. On her first day at school she decided to wear hijab, and she felt that this decision made her stand out of the crowd in an uncomfortable way. Throughout the course of the next several months, Sahar faced an internal struggle, choosing between wearing her headscarf or quitting the practice.

Sahar’s documentary, Thoughts In A Hijab, was created as a part of Youth Producing Change, a collaborative project between Human Rights Watch and Adobe Youth Voices. Let this film take you on a journey through Sahar’s experiences, and discover how she eventually learned to be confident in the choice that was right for her.

To learn more about Human Rights Watch’s work to protect a woman’s right to chose whether to wear a veil in public life, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/04/26/how-not-liberate-women

Guest post by Gregg Witkin

Uche  Ihenacho  is  a bright 17 year school high school senior born and raised in San Jose, California.  His family heritage includes his father from Nigeria and his mother from America, providing a unique bicultural perspective from which he works.

Growing up, Uche struggled to find success in school, which eventually led him to make poor choices about his time; most of which was spent not going of class.  Eventually his decisions caught up with him and his principal gave him the option of going to another high school to complete his diploma.  He enrolled at Boynton High School January of 2010 and immediately began to see a change in himself.  He was trying harder in his classes, and had the space to write lyrics and music.

As a part of Adobe Youth Voices, Uche found a new opportunity to explore putting those lyrics and music together in a video. To explore the concept of “Create with Purpose” he wrote a song entitled “Destined for Excellence” in which he highlights the avenues that will help make him successful.

Uche believes everyone deserves the opportunity to make second chance for themselves in life and is grateful for the opportunities he has received.  From remembering those who have helped pave the way, to contemporary themes such as performing well in school, Uche uses his video to say that not only is he destined for excellence but others can and should be as well.

Now an A and B student who is present, focused, and engaged, Uche believes his potential will only be limited by his imagination.  One of his goals is to produce music that empowers the listener to make a difference in their world.

He credits his success to both the freedom and training that Adobe Youth Voices employed as well as his own driven nature.  He recently said that he understands that in order to be successful one has to think successfully.  That circle perpetuates more success by attracting other successful people to you.  He has realized that by going to school he has set himself on a path for future success no matter what the profession, partly because of the skill set he developed while producing his video.

Uche if fully engrossed in a new project that will have identity as its main focus.  It seems poignant with all that is going on that Uche chose a project about being happy within your own skin.  His project will be a mixed media, not just a music video and he is in the early pre production stages.  He looks forward to completing another project and expanding the role he plays in Boynton’s Adobe Youth Voices program.

Gregg Witkin
Adobe Youth Voices Master Educator

For the month of October, Adobe Youth Voices is taking a look at the subject of identity. Who are we? Where do we come from? How do we form our sense of self when we exist at the crossroads between more than one culture or group?

To answer these questions, we are showcasing 15 great films in our youth media gallery that highlight our students’ efforts to understand themselves, and share their stories of how gender, faith, and ethnic background help to form their complex and multi-faceted identity.

At the Adobe Youth Voices summit in 2009, we were excited to gather together students from all around the world to create a single work of art. Collaborators from backgrounds as diverse as New Zealand, Ethiopia, Russia, and Uganda, from New York and California, all worked together to compose and film the music video “Identity”.

We invite you to read more about the collaborative process or watch the video below:

Cheers,
Stacey Long
Program Manager
Adobe Youth Voices