Makayla-Ayasha Haynes, known and acknowledged as “Sana'a,” is an artist listening to, learning from, and moving in sacred conversation with the arts and an emerging systems leader whose presence consistently reshapes rooms far beyond measured years. Through poetry, voice, visual art, and fashion, Sana'a has been naming harm, illuminating truth, and affirming Black women and girls since childhood—grounded in lived wisdom shaped by a personal journey of surviving and freedom from childhood sexual violence, and a deep commitment to safety, honesty, and collective care.

 

A performer with SAY Poetry and a recurring force in Courageous Access' Empowerment through The Arts Showcase (the prequel to the Courageous Access Black Women’s Conference), Sana'a now serves as Secretary of the Board of Directors for Courageous Access and as the conference event coordinator. Sana'a continues to take steps where every move is toward the future of activism and becoming a vocal vessel for the needs of the Black diaspora worldwide.

 

Unbound by age and uninterested in hierarchy, Sana'a embodies what is possible when truth is honored early, creativity is trusted as wisdom, and Black girls are allowed to grow into exactly who they already are.

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For more info, email her at: sanaachan0@gmail.com