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Aishah Shahidah Simmons

Aishah Shahidah Simmons

Keynote Speaker: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmaker, Author, Feminist & Activist

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Aishah Shahidah Simmons Biography

Aishah Shahidah Simmons (she/her) is an award-winning cultural worker who, for 30 years, has examined the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and sexual violence. She is also a trauma-informed, Mindfulness Meditation teacher who has been studying and practicing Theravada Buddhism for 20-years. Her lived experiences as a survivor of childhood and adult sexual violence committed to healing, accountability, and compassionate justice inform her teaching, film work, published writings, international lectures, and independent scholarship.

Presently, she is a member of the 2022-23 inaugural Changemaker Authors Cohort working on her memoir, Love, Justice, and Dharma, which is a continuation of work that originated with her 2020 Soros Media Fellowship. Love, Justice, and Dharma is the capstone of her trilogy of work centering on healing from and non-carceral accountability for childhood and adult sexual violence. It is also the bridge to her new direction of work primarily focused on offering resources and teachings on how mindfulness is a tool for supporting balance and cultivating compassion amid the often turbulent vicissitudes in life.

Aishah studied closely with her teacher, the late Toni Cade Bambara at Scribe Video Center in the early 1990s. With her self-defined AfroLez®femcentric pen and camera lens, Aishah wrote, directed and produced her widely acclaimed short videos Silence...Broken ©1993 and In My Father's House ©1996 address race, gender, homophobia, rape, reproductive justice, and misogyny.

Aishah is the producer, director and writer of the internationally acclaimed and award-winning feature length 2006-released film, NO! The Rape Documentary. Twelve years in the making and funded by the Ford Foundation, along with many other funding partners, NO! exposes the taboos that cover-up rape, sexual assault, and failed accountability in African-American communities. The film brings together leading and emerging Black scholars, theologians, artists, activists, men, women, and survivors to break silences and commit themselves to reshaping patriarchal cultures of violence against women and queer communities; and, to look at healing in those communities. NO! amplifies the imperative need for survivor-centered, non-carceral accountability. A precursor to the contemporary campus anti-sexual assault movements, NO! was ahead of its time. Its’ 2006-world premiere at the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, CA occurred 18-months before Title IX was successfully applied to campus sexual assault cases.

Aishah’s cultural work and activism have been both published and documented extensively in a wide range of media outlets including Lion’s Roar, USA Today, Black Perspectives (African American Intellectual Historical Society), Allure.com, #MeToo Movement International, The New York Times, NBC.com, Essence, CASSIUS, TruthOut, The Root, Imagine Otherwise, Crisis, Forbes, Left of Black, In These Times, Ms. Magazine, Alternet, ColorLines, The Philadelphia Tribune, The Chicago Defender, Black Agenda Report, NPR, Pacifica Radio Network and BET.

Aishah has screened her work, guest lectured, and facilitated workshops and dialogues to racially and ethnically diverse audiences at colleges and universities, high schools, conferences, international film festivals, rape crisis centers, battered women shelters, community centers, juvenile correctional facilities, and government sponsored events across the North American continent and in several countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Caribbean.

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Aishah Shahidah Simmons Videos

Aishah Shahidah Simmons speaks at 2018 March for Black Women
Aishah Shahidah Simmons 2020 Lambda Literary Award in LGBTQ Anthology

How do I book Aishah Shahidah Simmons to speak at my event?

Our experienced booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure speakers like Aishah Shahidah Simmons for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment since 2002. Click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page to check availability for Aishah Shahidah Simmons, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get speaking fee information and check availability for Aishah Shahidah Simmons or any other speaker of your choice.

How much does it cost to book Aishah Shahidah Simmons for a speaking engagement?

Speaking fees for Aishah Shahidah Simmons, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. The estimated fees to book Aishah Shahidah Simmons are Below $10,000 for live events and Below $10,000 for virtual events. For the most current speaking fee to hire Aishah Shahidah Simmons, click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak directly with an experienced booking agent.

What topics does Aishah Shahidah Simmons speak about?

Aishah Shahidah Simmons is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Women, Social Activism, Culture, Writing, Television & Film, Diversity, Literary, Civil Rights and LGBTQ.

Where does Aishah Shahidah Simmons travel from?

Aishah Shahidah Simmons generally travels from New York, NY, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances.

Who is the agent for Aishah Shahidah Simmons?

AAE Speakers Bureau has successfully secured keynote speakers like Aishah Shahidah Simmons for clients worldwide since 2002. As a full-service speaker booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Please click the Check Schedule button above and complete the form on this page including the details of your event, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Aishah Shahidah Simmons for your next private or corporate function.

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AAE Speakers Bureau is a full-service speaker booking agency, meaning we can completely manage the speaker’s or celebrity’s engagement with your organization from the time of booking your speaker through the event’s completion. We provide all of the services you need to host Aishah Shahidah Simmons or any other speaker of your choice, including offer negotiation, contractual assistance, accounting and billing, and event speaker travel and logistics services. When you book a speaker with us, we manage the process of hosting a speaker for you as an extension of your team. Our goal is to give our clients peace of mind and a best-in-class service experience when booking a speaker with us.

Why is AAE Speakers Bureau different from other booking agencies?

If you’re looking for the best speaker recommendations, paired with a top-notch customer service experience, you’re in the right place. At AAE Speakers Bureau, we exclusively represent the interests of our clients - professional organizations, companies, universities, and associations. We intentionally do not represent the speakers we feature or book. That is so we can present our clients with the broadest and best performing set of speaker options in the market today, and we can make these recommendations without any obligation to promote a specific speaker over another. This is why when our agents suggest a speaker for your event, you can be assured that they are of the highest quality with a history of proven success with our other clients.


Aishah Shahidah Simmons is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics including Women, Social Activism and Culture. The estimated speaking fee range to book Aishah Shahidah Simmons for live events is Below $10,000, and for virtual events Below $10,000. Aishah Shahidah Simmons generally travels from New York, NY, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Dorothy Roberts, Blair Imani and Jennifer Storm. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Aishah Shahidah Simmons for an upcoming event.

Aishah Shahidah Simmons Videos

Aishah Shahidah Simmons speaks at 2018 March for Black Women
Aishah Shahidah Simmons 2020 Lambda Literary Award in LGBTQ Anthology
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