We’re so excited to introduce VOW’s inaugural Storyteller Initiative Fellows.
Our new fellowship program supports artists, journalists, and narrative changemakers from historically marginalized communities to develop their own projects. Voice of Witness provides oral history training, guidance, and funding to fellows working to document and uplift stories from their own communities.
The initiative aims to expand the kinds of stories that get told, strengthen community-rooted projects, and contribute to movements for justice. Get to know the Voice of Witness fellows below!
Kristal Sotomayor
Kristal Sotomayor is an award-winning nonbinary Peruvian American filmmaker, journalist and curator based in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Named one of “10 Latinx Filmmakers You Should Know About” by HipLatina, their film “Expanding Sanctuary” (OTV/New Day Films) won the 2024 BlackStar Philadelphia Filmmaker Award and their short “Don’t Cry For Me All You Drag Queens” has screened across the globe.
About Kristal’s project:
The Untitled Water Access Audio Documentary explores the impact of water privatization on communities in Pennsylvania through firsthand oral histories. Blending investigative journalism with intimate storytelling, the project amplifies the voices of residents, activists, and policymakers fighting for equitable access to clean and affordable water. By centering community narratives, the audio documentary aims to challenge corporate control over essential resources and inspire collective action.
‘I’m excited about the opportunity to be a VOW Storyteller Initiative Fellow because it provides the support and resources to share a vital story—one that includes my own family—about the human impact of corporate takeovers of public resources. Through this work, I hope to inspire awareness, advocacy, and action toward water justice while furthering my commitment to ethical, community-centered storytelling.”
Feini Yin
Feini Yin is a journalist, community organizer, and fishmonger living on Lenapehoking, so-called Philadelphia. They build power with family-scale and traditional fishing communities as an organizer with Block Corporate Salmon, the North American Marine Alliance, and Fishadelphia. They grew up in Philadelphia and New Jersey, in a Chinese immigrant household that ate fish every week, steamed whole with soy sauce and lots of aromatics.
About Feini’s project:
“In Our Wildest Salmon Dreams” is a multimedia storytelling project showcasing oral histories and visionary fiction from Salmon Protectors and BIPOC activists working toward fisheries restoration and food sovereignty. Wild Salmon are on the brink of collapse across Turtle Island, threatened by habitat loss, dams, salmon farms, bycatch from factory trawlers, an industrial food system that has severed the relationship communities have to nature and place, and the disenfranchisement of Indigenous communities. Yet Salmon cultures remain vibrant and resilient and continue to teach us all about life. This project will foster relationship building, collective dreaming, and storytelling that supports resistance against colonialism and environmental degradation.
“I’m excited to be a VOW Storyteller Initiative Fellow because of the incredible community of care, mentorship, and support. Trained as a journalist, I have a lot to learn from oral history methods. It’s an honor to study with teachers who are so experienced and generous with their wisdom.”
Subscribe to VOW’s newsletter and social media to follow updates on the Storyteller Initiative projects.
Interested in supporting these projects? Reach out to VOW’s editorial program manager Fanny García and donate to help us fully fund and sustain this program.
