The World Needs More Shanthony Exums

Hard times are just a moment in time; if you persevere, you will either acclimate, or you will change the situation. 

Last week, I went through one of the hardest times I have ever dealt with while in college. I didn't sleep for 6 days in a row. My eyes were bloodshot and sagging. My anxiety had skyrocketed. I couldn't focus on any of my homework or papers. It felt like the drama surrounding me was never-ending, and like I was going to be the center of attention for decades to come -- and not in a positive way.

Every morning before going to class or going outside of my dorm room, I reminded myself of my favorite quote: this too shall pass.

And then, I changed my situation. After dealing with drama and bullsh** for a week, I decided that I wasn't going to let that get the best of me, and I stood up for myself.

Just like my newest idol said, "if you persevere...you will change the situation."

Meet Shanthony Exum: activist, graphic designer, and rapper.

Who knew what a combination these three could make? This girl is, to say the least, one hell of a powerhouse of a woman. I could not be more thankful that she came to speak at my school last week because her words are exactly what I needed to hear.

A few weeks ago on MLK day, I remember scrolling through my Twitter feed and seeing a campaign by MTV called "Look Different." I was intrigued by the individual one-sentence stories that accompanied each black and white portrait of a person, but I didn't really look into the campaign, I just thought it was cool. Then I found out Exum was the one behind these graphics, and I was floored.

The biggest reason I was so inspired by Exum's talk was because she included a section after every part of her talk that was called "lessons learned." It's one thing to see an activist talk about their life and why they did certain things or created certain movements, but it's another to hear about the universal lessons that came out of these actions. This was the most beneficial part for me to hear as a college student. Exum told us about her time in college and where her work first began (in her North Carolina college town) when she realized that she was too stuck in her own head and wasn't tuned in to big events that were happening throughout the world, such as the wars in Iraq/Iran or why America was obsessed with consuming oil. With this, she worked towards creating an "informed revolution" so that people like her were not caught up in their own lives and so that they were realizing what was going on in their surroundings.

Lesson: experiment, though you may fail.

From there, she created what is called the "F.R.E.E. Collective" movement with her friends that was created to incite change and raise awareness in her community regarding politics. Exum wanted to give young adults the chance to be informed so that they would feel less apathetic towards politics. This included raising awareness for big issues, such as the importance of health insurance through drawing chalk bodies on sidewalks with statistics in them to demonstrate that health care is a human right, not a privilege. The lessons that came out of this movement included collaborating with like-minded people since there is power in numbers, and change happens from the ground up.

One of Exum's more recent projects is "The Every Body Project" that focuses on what people like about themselves. Although Exum doesn't consider herself a photographer, she wanted to empower people by creating this photo project that showed off the unique style of each human being. This stemmed from Exum's shock of the statistics she researched, like the fact that 90% of girls ages 15-17 want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearances. From this, Exum created info graphics and used her photo project to show that style shouldn't be limited, and that just a single compliment can go a long way in making someone's day.

Lessons learned: create projects you want to see in the world and don't be afraid to experiment.

The biggest thing that inspired me was Exum's attitude. She isn't afraid to rely on others for help. She thrives off of working with mentors. She works her ass off day after day, but to her, it isn't work. When she lost her job, she didn't sit around and pity herself. She picked up and moved to New York City, which is the definition of a bold move. In this, she learned that setbacks can be positive when you evaluate your situation and make changes.

If you didn't already think she was cool enough, get this: she has music videos - music videos that have hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube. She goes by the punny name "Miss Eaves" based on her favorite font she she is a writer. Check out the videos here and prepare to be amazed, inspired, and confident.

The second I left the room, I downloaded every song she's made and I can now say "Thunder Thighs" is my new summer anthem.

Shanthony, thank you for giving me what I needed to hear as a 20-year-old college student.