Emerging Voices Present: Child of Apartheid Film Screening

Join the AIANY Emerging New York Architects Committee (ENYA) for an evening of filmmaking, architecture, and activism as we host an exclusive virtual screening of Child of Apartheid. This short, 25-minute film follows Wandile Mthiyane, a young South African architecture student with big dreams. Determined to help undo the damage caused by Apartheid, Mthiyane embarks on a mission to change the future of South Africa one home at a time.

After the film, Mthiyane will answer questions about his experience working against Apartheid architecture in South Africa. He will also introduce Anti-Racist Hot Dog, an effort to reclaim public space in Durban, South Africa that has relocated to the United States as a justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) consulting firm. A panel of members from Anti-Racist Hot Dog will discuss the power architecture firms have to work for racial equity from the inside out and how they can have fun in the process. Attendees will have the opportunity to create direct anti-racist impact at the event by giving toward a $35,000 goal to build the next Ubuntu home for the Ngcobo family in South Africa.

This event is hosted and sponsored by Ubuntu Design Group, Anti-Racist Hot Dog, and ENYA.Speakers:

Stephen Allcock, Film Director
Danei Cesario, AIA, RIBA, NCARB, NOMA, Project Manager, Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM); Founder, WALLEN + daub
Wandile Mthiyane, Founder and Anti-Racist Chef, Anti-Racist Hot Dog
Stephen Erich, Co-Founder and Anti-Racist Sous-Chef, Anti-Racist Hot Dog
Michael Nixon, Esq., Chef Advisor and Consultant, Anti-Racist Hot Dog; Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, Andrews University  

About the Speakers:

Born in England, Stephen Allcock has spent much of his life traveling and working in various fields from security to cinematography, factory production lines to project management, and pet retail to vice-chair of Ubuntu Design Group. At 26 years of age, Allcock attained a BFA in Documentary Film from Andrews University in the USA; during the course of his studies, he worked on various documentaries and film productions that took him across the globe. His first film, The Hugs Project, took the prize for Best Short Documentary at the 2017 SonScreen Film Festival. Since then, he has spent two and a half years producing his graduating piece, Child of Apartheid. Danei Cesario is the 333rd Black woman in American history to earn her architectural license. She is an internationally licensed architect, project manager, and public speaker. Cesario is a Project Manager at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), overseeing dynamic mixed-use development and healthcare projects. Her passion for architecture and advocacy, as well as her diverse experiences in healthcare, equity, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have led her to become a sought-after speaker, with engagements at numerous national and international conferences and private-sector events, including the United Nations, SXSW, Royal Institute of British Architects, the AIA Conference on Architecture, and the New York Building Congress. Cesario served as chair of the AIANY Diversity & Inclusion Committee for over five years. Currently, she serves on the AIA New York State Board (representing nearly 10,000 members across 13 chapters), the Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization, and the AIANY Nominating Committee. She is an ambassador to organizations vested in equity, diversity and inclusion including Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust, and nycobaNOMA Executive Board. Cesario is dedicated to fostering mentorship, sponsorship, and leadership within the design community. She founded WALLEN + daub to expand on these principles.

Wandile Mthiyane is an Obama Leader, dynamic speaker, equity and inclusion thought leader, adjunct professor, and architect who holds a master’s in architecture from Andrews University in Michigan. He is a Resolution Fellow, One Young World ambassador, and the CEO of social impact architecture firm Ubuntu Design Group, the Anti-Racist Hotdog, and Ubuntu Architecture Summer Abroad Design Justice school. As a result of his upbringing and life experiences, dversity and inclusion are core themes for Mthiyane in serving his purpose as an architect and DEI guide. He was born during apartheid South Africa, attended high school in Zimbabwe, and then went on to complete his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in architecture at the most ethnically diverse university in the United States: Andrews University in the state of Michigan. These diverse experiences around the world have shaped his understanding of the different environments around him and the importance of inclusion, which embraces the cultural roots that different communities are drawn to.

Stephen Erich is a chaplain, activist, and business strategist. He serves as a spiritual life advisor at Columbia and NYU where he co-chairs a committee for anti-racism as a spiritual practice. He holds an MA in Religion from Yale Divinity School, where he organized an interfaith conference on mass incarceration and edited the Yale Journal of International Affairs. He also holds an MBA from Andrews University, where he has lectured on accounting and economics in addition to organizing multiple summits on social issues. Erich has spoken on religion and human rights in over five countries and 15 U.S. states.

Michael Nixon is the Vice President for Diversity & Inclusion at Andrews University. He began this work at the age of 29, and is the first to serve in this position at Andrews. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the History & Political Science Department, where he also advises pre-law students. Prior to this work, Nixon served as the Legal Coordinator for the Fair Housing Justice Center in New York City. He has a law degree from the John Marshall Law School (JMLS) in Chicago, Illinois and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Andrews University. He became a member of the New York State Bar in 2014. Along with his wife, Pastor Tacyana Nixon and Pastor Ty Gibson, Nixon co-founded Against The Wall, which focuses on speaking with passionate clarity against walls of racial separation and injustice across the globe—both inside and outside of the Adventist Church. Nixon and his wife have a little girl, Noa Elise.   This event is offered virtually; you will receive an email with a Zoom link to access the program.Read the full post on Bustler