When Farah, a 22-year-old performance poet from Palestine, was informed her scholarship application for studying at Goldsmiths University had been rejected, she feared she might have to give up on her dreams of studying Performance and Culture in London forever.
She knew all too well she couldn’t afford to pay the hefty tuition fees and living costs of studying abroad in one of the most expensive cities in the world out of her own pocket. Turning to the crowdfunding platform Indiegogo as a last resort, Farah was stunned when she raised US$11,823 in just under two months.
She said: “Most of the people who donated are people I know, friends and family, people I’ve worked with, people very much involved in the art scene. I was not expecting half the amount, and I’m almost at US$12,000 now. I have 20 days left and I might reach US$13,000, almost half the amount originally listed.”
Starting out at the age of sixteen, Farah performed her poetry in cafes and at cultural events, after joining a poetry collective in Dubai called Rooftop Rhythms and uploading videos of her work on YouTube. Snowballing into a popular YouTuber, she started receiving invitations to perform in other countries, including Morocco, Qatar, Spain, the UK and Belgium.
It’s thanks to Farah’s friends, family and followers on social media that she managed to raise such a hefty amount. The average donation has been between US$100 and US$200.
Despite her success on Indiegogo, Farah has had to defer her studies until next year. She said: “I just felt that even with the Indiegogo money, it would be very difficult to survive in London, just looking at rent and living costs. This year, I will apply to as many scholarships as I can and of course the Indiegogo money will remain untouched until then.”
“I spoke to the university and they understood. They know that when you don’t have a scholarship, funding is not an easy thing to do. They sent me a letter stating that I still have my place.”
Donate to Farah Chammah’s Indiegogo campaign here or listen to her work here.