Yvette Modestin- Lepolata Aduke Apoukissi- Empress Modest-I is a writer, activist, poet, storyteller born and raised in Colon, Panama. Ms. Modestin was named one of “30 Afro Latinas you should know.” She is Founder/Executive Director of Encuentro Diaspora Afro in Boston, MA. Ms. Modestin has been profiled by the Boston Globe as "The Uniter'' for her work in bringing the Latin American and African American community together and for her activism in building a voice for the Afro Latino Community. She was named an “Influeyentes” in Panama for her advocacy in bringing attention to the struggle of the black communities in Panama with a focus on her home province of Colon. Ms. Modestin received the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ from El Mundo Boston newspaper, one of the oldest Latino newspapers in New England in October 2021.
She is the co-founder of The HairSTory Project and the co-curator of the production ReRooted. She is the founder of #MyCrownSpeaks Street Stories. IN 2021 Ms. Modestin testified before the Massachusetts Senate on behalf of the Crown Act. The Crown Act was passed in March 2022 in Mass. In September 2020 Empress Modest-I was named Reparations and Pan African Ambassador for the Alianza Rastafari de Panama. In 2019 Ms. Modestin received the inaugural “Every Woman is an Activist '' Award from March Forward Massachusetts. In 2020 Ms. Modestin was named one of the Women Winning Globally on International Women’s Day by Afrocenchix. In 2019 her Poetry book, Nubian Butterfly; The Transformation of a Soulful Heart was released in Panama. In September of 2018 she was named as one of the ’10 Central American Poets you should be reading. In February 2021 she was named as one of the 6 Contemporary Panamanian Authors You Should Know by the Latino Book Review.
In March 2018 on International Women’s Day, she was named as one of the Latina Women Who Inspire. In July 2017 she was named one of 9 Inspiring Women who fought for the Rights and Visibility of Afro Latin Americans by Remezcla. She was recently named as one of the Top 5 Latina Activists by Wear Your Voice Media. Ms. Modestin is the narrator of the film ‘Cimarronaje en Panama/Maroons in Panama’ , a film by Toshi Sakai. She is one of the editors and writers of the book, “Women Warriors of the Afro Latina Diaspora ''. The book was named in the top five Latino books in the country for 2013. She is a contributor in the book, The Trayvon Martin in US: An American Tragedy and the Psychological Health of Women of Color to name a few. In Panama she was a contributor to Rapsodia Antillana and Antologia de Poetas Colonense 1900-2012. Ms. Modestin testified before the Massachusetts Senate on behalf of the Crown Act. The legislation specifically prohibits discrimination based on "natural and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, twists, Bantu knots and other formations was passed in March 2022. Ms. Modestin is the co-author of the Boston City Council ordinance to create a Reparations Commission.
Yvette Modestin battles exclusion by creatively redefining her Blackness.
Yvette was one of the Activator speakers at the Amplify Conference 2018. She is Founder/ Executive Director of Encuentro Diaspora Afro, a writer, poet and activist was born and raised in Colon, Panama. She was named one of “30 Afro Latinas you Should Know” in the world, and recently named as one of the 100 Most Influential African Diaspora Leaders.