Aisha Fukushima is a recent recipient of the prestigious Watson Foundation Summer Fellowship, which will pay her $28,000 to travel to Morocco, India, South Africa, United Kingdom and Senegal to study raptivism for 12 months.

Fukushima grew up singing in musicals. She sang because she needed an after-school activity to occupy her while her parents, international booking agents, were busy in the music realm.

After traveling around and living in various cities between Seattle and Bellevue, Fukushima spent seven years in a small international school in Bellevue where she became fluent in French.

At Whitman, Fukushima has firmly established herself as a social “raptivist,” singing to express the grass-roots, street-consciousness that can often be forgotten.

In addition, Fukushima was involved with the American Civil Liberties Union, Justice Beyond Borders, Whitman Direct Action and the creation of the Whitman Institute for Summer Enrichment (WISE) program.

When asked about her future plans, Fukushima said, “Although I love music and music will always be a part of my life, I don’t know that I want to pursue it as a lifetime career. One thing that’s pretty sure is that whatever I do in the future will involve advocacy for human rights and socioeconomic justice–giving back to our local, national and international community.”

Fukushima will begin her journey in human rights and socioeconomic justice through her summer fellowship, hoping to learn what it truly means to be a global citizen.