Words by Smiley Team
Born in Brooklyn to Haitian and Ethiopian immigrant parents, Bianca Jean-Pierre has always been attracted to artistic expression and storytelling, fuelled by her creative upbringing.
After nearly a decade of working in the fashion and marketing industries, she was inspired to use her entrepreneurial spirit to make a difference. And so, SHEER Worldwide was launched: a multi-cultural creative space that doesn’t conform to any status quo.
SHEER is a media platform that welcomes creatives of color from all walks of life. The mission? To prioritize diversity, transparency, and authenticity in all projects and ventures.
“There is enough pressure to mold ourselves into who society believes we should be, while Sheer encourages freely expressing and celebrating ourselves unapologetically,” says Bianca. “We hope visitors feel empowered while visiting the site – whether that’s through a creative’s life story or feeling represented in an editorial.”
[Read More: The powerful initiative diversifying our media]
Bianca says she wanted to create a platform that allows GenZers and millennials to have a place to create. “How I view the world stems from my cultural background and my love for creativity,” she tells Smiley News.
“Having immigrant parents encouraged me to go to college and major as a lawyer – but I knew it was something I didn’t want to do. So when I created SHEER, I thought about others who were like me, but didn’t have a platform for their creativity.”
After the events of 2020 with the Black Lives Matter movement and more recently, Stop Asian Hate, Bianca wanted to dig deeper and bring those voices to her platform. “I noticed a lot of people were being reactionary and wanted to speak out against what was happening, but didn’t have any solutions or actions to show that they knew the complexity of the problems,” she says.
Some of the topics she touches on using the platform are colorism, gentrification and |so many different issues that affect us today”.
SHEER Worldwide is looking for partners who are also looking to drive a positive impact in their communities. “Those who partner with me must come with a plan on how we together can create change and acceptance in the changing landscape of our time,” says Bianca.
The overall goal is to provide a platform where others can be themselves and show their work – and for those who follow are learning or feel inspired to get up and do something positive.
“I just want others to learn and feel empowered, as to show love to others because in the times we’re in now, spreading love and kindness is what we really need,” adds Bianca.
Check out SHEER Worldwide and find out how you can get involved and spread a little cheer along the way.
