Discovering New York Suffrage Stories
We Rise - Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
Founded in 1913, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was created with the expressed goals of scholarship, service, and sisterhood. Even though they faced resistance, their first public act was to participate in the suffrage parade. In doing so, they cemented their position as a political force. The Sorority’s journey is told through members Paula Giddings and Alicka Ampry-Samuel.
Akisa Omulepu
FILMMAKER BIO
Akisa Omulepu is an Emmy-nominated documentarian, director, and producer. She is the founder of Emerge Omnimedia. Emerge’s mission is to create and tell stories that explore, investigate, and celebrate the global Black experience.
Most recently she directed and produced a documentary short for PBS. 'A Dream Deferred, The Broken Promise of New York City Public Housing' was nominated for two Emmys. Her documentary short, ‘Crowned,’ debuted and had a limited engagement at the Anthology Film Archives in New York City. The film explores the lives of three young African-American women navigating their way from high school to college.
A native New Yorker, Akisa decided to move to Nairobi, Kenya and fully immerse herself in reporting and producing internationally. While in Kenya, she Executive Produced and hosted a weekly television show and was a part of the NBC Nightly News production team that covered the Westgate Mall terror attack, among other things.
Akisa earned her bachelor’s degree in economics from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, a graduate degree in journalism from Columbia University, and is a Yale World Fellow. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and The National Association of Black Journalists.
Major support for Discovering New York Suffrage Stories was provided by The National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor, by the Susan Howarth Foundation, and KeyBank in partnership with First Niagara Foundation. With additional funding from the Fred L. Emerson Foundation and Humanities New York.