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Our relationship with beauty is ancient. Tastemakers often set beauty standards that so many of us chase. When asked how she would define beauty, Yara Shahidi told Vogue, “I try to undefine it which may sound super broad but that’s the point because everything is to be beautiful.” For Shahidi, resetting the parameters around beauty or reconsidering the metrics for success on a wider scale isn’t the endgame. If just changing the beauty standard is the goal, that still sets a new standard, and where there is a standard, someone is always going to be excluded. Shahidi is setting an example of what it looks like to make material change and strive towards undefining these notions of ourselves.

In the same conversation with Vogue, Shahidi says that her proudest career moment took place when, in Cincinnati, a high school girl got out of her car to tell Shahidi that she took AP World History because of her. With academic achievements that include her recent graduation from Harvard University, Shahidi has appeared in conversation with the likes of Dr. Angela Davis, President Obama, Harry Belafonte Jr., former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Dr. Cornell West. Among her accolades as an award-winning actress and producer, Shahidi is deeply invested in advocacy work around inclusion and equity. She has received recognition as TIME Magazine’s 30 Most Influential Teens, Forbes 30 Under 30, British Vogue Forces for Change, Glamour Magazine’s Women of the Year and Essence Magazine’s Black Women in Hollywood among numerous other achievements for her leadership. Forthcoming, Shahidi will take on the role of Tinker Bell in Disney’s live-action film, Peter Pan & Wendy as well as appear in Apple’s upcoming American anthology drama series, Extrapolations, as well as voice a character in Netflix’s animated film, My Father’s Dragon.

Yara Shahidi continually grapples with complicated questions around dismantling colonial, hegemonic standards of beauty and intellect, and decentralizing both from the conversation around personhood all together. Her impact is vast. Inspired by her work with President and First Lady Obama, she founded WeVoteNext, to advocate for Gen Z and BIPOC inclusion in the political process.  When Vogue asked Shahidi what she wanted to be remembered for, she replied, “I really like to think of impact over legacy.”