Storytelling for Social Change: Film Screening of Being BeBe

BEING BEBE is a new documentary telling the story of Marshall Ngwa (a.k.a. BeBe Zahara Benet). Ngwa came to the United States in pursuit of education, and discovered his own tremendous gifts in the art form of drag. The film parallels Marshall’s fight to maintain the trajectory of his career alongside a deep connection with his traditional African roots and family. Spanning over 15 years, BEING BEBE intimately follows Marshall’s remarkable journey from the earliest days of his amateur drag performance career in Minneapolis to his emergence as one of the leading artists in the movement to celebrate and advance Black Queer Excellence.

Join HRI on January 30, 2025 at 5:30 PM at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library for a screening and panel discussion on storytelling’s power to advance human rights. The panel will explore the role of visibility and representation in challenging societal norms and art’s ability to amplify marginalized voices.

Panelists:

• Emily Branham, Director of Being Bebe
• Kendra Frith, Senior Engagement Officer, Community Mobilization & Project Management (US) at Rainbow Railroad
• Kenya Hutton, President and CEO at the Center for Black Equity
• Marshall Kudi Ngwa, artist and drag performer, Bebe Zahara Benet