Houreidja is an NYC-based journalist and culture writer who explores the stories of communities that are disregarded by traditional media and shows the nuances in their experiences. She interned for a summer at Refinery29, where she wrote articles ranging from an interview with a Black brand founder to a how-to guide on managing COVID-related anxiety. She has also written for Slate, Documented, Next City, Harper’s Bazaar, Teen Vogue and Youth Today. In 2022, she worked as the social media manager at Capital B News and in December of that year she received her master's degree in Engagement Journalism from The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. She created a newsletter, Beautiful Thoughts, where she writes about beauty across the African diaspora. She is interested in opportunities to write for and work with various publications.
CURRICULUM VITAE
FREELANCE JOURNALIST
August 2020 - Present
Report on issues related to people of the African diaspora, contemporary culture, and overlooked communities.
Published articles in Youth Today, Refinery29, Documented, Next City and Slate.
For Teen Vogue: wrote about the power of Black cultural Instagram pages and the threat of online surveillance.
For Harper’s Bazaar: wrote articles about topics including Black reproductive health workers taking care of their patients during quarantine, Black women who choose to remain child-free, Black women’s experience with their natural hair and West African hair braiders experiencing job-related injuries and a profile of a Broadway play about a braiding salon.
Created “Braiding Resource and News” WhatsApp group, a solutions journalism product to address information gap needs for West African hair braiders in Harlem.
CAPITAL B NEWS - SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
January 2022 - June 2022
Amplified the stories of writers via social media platforms and cultivated interactions with readers.
Monitored social media analytics via platforms such as Hootsuite and prepared weekly reports for managers with commentary on trends and patters and advice on how to refine strategy.
Wrote concise social copy for 7-10 Capital B stories daily on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Organized events for writers to interact with followers such as Twitter Spaces.
REFINERY29 - EDITORIAL INTERN
June 2021 - August 2021
Pitched and wrote articles, assisted executive editor at women-centered lifestyle site.
Published articles ranging from interview with Black brand founder to a how-to guide on managing COVID-related anxiety.
Pitched and wrote stories for Unbothered, site’s vertical for Black women.
AFRICAN WOMEN’S MILLENNIAL INITIATIVE (AWOMI) - REMOTE COORDINATOR
September 2019 - January 2020
Volunteered for organization that sought to empower young women across African continent.
Registered delegates and panelists for International Conference for Population Development in Nairobi.
Networked with other organizations at ICPD to identify opportunities for collaboration and funding.
Worked with president of AWOMI to create draft of proposal to fund summer institute and future initiatives.
EDUCATION
CRAIG NEWMARK GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Graduated December 2022
Master of Arts in Engagement Journalism
Recipient of Vice-Knight and Anne O'Hare McCormick Memorial Fund scholarships
BROOKLYN COLLEGE
Graduated February 2020
Bachelor of Arts in Women's and Gender Studies
2019 Spring semester abroad in Dakar, Senegal through School for International Training’s Senegal: Global Security and Religious Pluralism program
Recipient of Benjamin T. Gilman, Leonard and Claire Tow Undergraduate Travel Stipend for International Research Award and Roy L. Furman Fellows Program scholarships
Let’s Talk
houreidja [at] gmail [dot] com