Her quest is to evoke change.
Photo by Lamar Cato
By Kareemah Muhammad
Ruth Jean-Marie is the designer of Uprising, one of the limited edition Nike sneakers released in the We Are Cultivator x Nike by you Initiative. She is a change-maker in her own right. The Haitian-American writer and founder of the The August Project, hails from Brooklyn, NY and designed her sneaker to mirror the uniforms of Haitian Revolutionaries.
The name of the sneaker itself, Uprising, is what Ruth describes as reminiscent of change and the need for it.
The sneakers serves as a reminder of the Haitian Revolution when African slaves revolted against the cruel conditions inflicted upon them; ultimately gaining their independence from France on January 1, 1804.
Photo by Lamar Cato
The light-weight and supportive sneaker features colors ranging from black and deep blue to luminous green, red and gold. These colors are found both in the uniforms of revolutionaries like Toussaint Loverture and in the Haitian flag.
Painting of Toussaint Louverture
“These are meant to be revolutionary--they’re a restarting, a rebellion, a reminder of the power of a thought.”
- Ruth Jean-Marie
Ruth’s goal is to continuously remind us of the power of thought and that she knows much is possible due to the success of the Haitian Revolution.
Jean-Marie was selected from a highly competitive pool of candidates for the Give Thanks Drop as part We Are Cultivator x Nike by you Initiative. She is one of 37 creatives that have their sneakers featured in the program and proudly represents the Haitian-American community in Brooklyn with this opportunity.
“Brooklyn has the highest population of Haitians in NYC; we have colored the city with culture and joy,” states Ruth (Nike by you x We Are Cultivator website).
Jean-Marie knows that while she takes great pride in being from Brooklyn, there is still work to be done in Haïti.
In fact, what inspired her to work on the sneaker is her mission to alleviate poverty Haïti. To build on that purpose, she plans to use 50% of the Uprising sneaker proceeds to support the outreach initiatives of her organization, The August Project.
The name alone pays homage to the Haitian Revolution since it began during the month of August. The organization strives to work on alleviating poverty in Leogane, Haiti by igniting imagination through literacy programs that leverage volunteer power to create change. To date, one of the most successful endeavors at the organization is their project on gathering stories of Haitians around the world.
Like Ruth, countless other guest designers have joined We Are Cultivator x Nike by you Initiative to share their stories of gratitude and what ignited their creativity.
To Ruth, “It is the imagination of what’s possible that matters more than the movement.”
Ruth’s limited edition Uprising sneakers are available until Sunday, November 10th 2019.
To learn more about the Uprising sneakers visit We Are Cultivator x Nike by you Initiative.
To learn more about Ruth follow @theaugustprjct and @lesocialnomad on social media.
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