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Najwa Zebian (born 27 April 1990) is a Lebanese–Canadian activist, author, poet, educator, and speaker based in London, Ontario.[1] Zebian gained widespread attention on Instagram through sharing her instapoetry[2] and popularity during the #MeToo movement[3] via her TEDx talks[4] and interviews on Canadian news outlets such as CBC,[5] and Entertainment Tonight,[6] among others.[7][8]
Najwa Zebian | |
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Born | |
Citizenship |
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Occupation(s) | Activist, author, speaker, and educator |
Notable work | Mind Platter (2016) The Nectar of Pain (2016) Sparks of Phoenix (2019) |
Website | www.najwazebian.com |
Early life and education
editZebian was born in Lebanon and moved to Canada at the age of sixteen during the 2006 Lebanon War, when her family settled in Ontario, Canada.[9][10]
Zebian attended the University of Western Ontario where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology in 2010 and a Master of Education in Curriculum Studies in 2013. She then continued her studies and completed a Doctorate in Educational Leadership in 2022.[11]
Career
editZebian self-published her first book, Mind Platter, in January 2016.[12] She described it as a, "Compilation of reflections on life as seen through the eyes of an educator, student, and human who experienced her early days in silence."[13] In its first month, Mind Platter brought in $2,300, which Zebian donated to the Syrian Refugee Fund in London. She also earmarked a percentage of her profits to finance summer activities for city high school students.[14] A revised and expanded version of Mind Platter was published in March 2018 by Andrews McMeel Publishing.[15] Zebian’s work slowly gained public recognition on social media via mentions by celebrities such as Mathieu Kassovitz, Lisa Rinna, LeAnn Rimes, and Hilary Swank.[3][2]
Her second book, The Nectar of Pain,[16] comprises poetry and prose; it was self-published in October 2016.[17] Zebian writes about the feelings elicited by a painful breakup.[18] A revised and expanded edition was released in March 2018 by Andrews McMeel Publishing.[15]
In 2017, Zebian lent her voice to the #MeToo movement when she opened up about being a victim of sexual harassment by an authority figure with whom she worked as a teacher.[19][20] She writes of her abuse: "I was blamed for it. I was told not to talk about it. I was told that it wasn’t that bad. I was told to get over it." An excerpt from her comments was referenced by the New York Times[21][22] and one of her poems was featured in news stories about the #MeToo movement which ran in The Huffington Post, BBC News, CBS News, and Glamour.[3]
In March 2019, Zebian's third book, Sparks of Phoenix,[23] was published by Andrews McMeel Publishing. In this collection, her subject matter is her own healing from abuse; and her progress towards resilience and strength.[24][18][25]
Published works
edit- Mind Platter. Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2018.
- The Nectar of Pain. Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2018.
- Sparks of Phoenix. Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2019.
- Welcome Home. Harmony Books, 2021.
- The Book of Healing. Andrews McMeel Publishing. 2021.
- Trust Your Heart. Scribd Original. 2023.
- The Only Constant. Penguin Canada. 2024.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Hawksley, Rupert (1 November 2018). "Najwa Zebian: writing was genuinely my only way of dealing with the world". The National. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Is Najwa Zebian poised to be the next Rupi Kaur?". Quill and Quire. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- ^ a b c "Najwa Zebian Tackles Racism, Isolation, Sexual Harassment Through Poetry". HuffPost Canada. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- ^ "Najwa Zebian". Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "How Najwa Zebian uses poetry to connect with herself, her students and nearly one million Instagram followers | CBC Radio".
- ^ "ET Canada Connects: Najwa Zebian". Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "London Writer Joins #MeToo Campaign". London. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- ^ "Ontario High School Teacher Has Celebs Hanging Onto Her Every Word". HuffPost Canada. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ^ Dundas, Deborah (18 April 2019). "Najwa Zebian on how poetry helps her define home". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
- ^ "London Writer Joins #MeToo Campaign". London. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ^ Graham, Andrew (14 February 2024). "Dr. Najwa Zebian on the transformative power of authenticity". Faculty of Education. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
- ^ Zebian, Najwa (27 March 2018). Mind Platter. Andrews McMeel Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4494-9551-0.
- ^ "Mind Platter".
- ^ Beitollahi, Yasamin (12 May 2016). "Millennials Paving The Way: Najwa Zebian, Author of "Mind Platter"". HuffPost. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Is Najwa Zebian poised to be the next Rupi Kaur?". Quill and Quire. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
- ^ Zebian, Najwa (2 October 2018). The Nectar of Pain. Andrews McMeel Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4494-9988-4.
- ^ "The Nectar of Pain".
- ^ a b "Najwa Zebian: Healing through the power of words". The Gazette • Western University's Student Newspaper. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
- ^ "Facebook admits it made a mistake pulling post that sparked police investigation". CBC.
- ^ "London principal takes legal action against poet Najwa Zebian". CBC.
- ^ "Najwa Zebian: The Lebanese poet speaking up about the #MeToo movement". The National. 8 January 2018. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
- ^ Codrea-Rado, Anna (16 October 2017). "#MeToo Floods Social Media With Stories of Harassment and Assault". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- ^ Zebian, Najwa (5 March 2019). Sparks of Phoenix. Andrews McMeel Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5248-5272-6.
- ^ "#MeToo: How Lebanon-born poet Najwa Zebian stood up to her harasser". Emirates Woman. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ^ "Poet Najwa Zebian rises again with Sparks of Phoenix". Quill and Quire. 8 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2020.