about.

bio.

Azmera Hammouri-Davis is a spoken word poet, musician, speaker and lived theologian from Kea‘au, Hawai‘i. An interdisciplinary scholar-practitioner, she integrates the arts, theology and cultural studies to advance healing-centered approaches to justice, public safety, and community well-being.

The granddaughter of a refugee from Hebron, Palestine, Azmera’s work is grounded in diasporic memory, resilience, and global consciousness. She is the author of Breaking the Boxes: Poems for Keeping Hope Alive When Your Faith is Fractured and a contributing writer to The Cross and the Olive Tree (Orbis Books, 2025). She speaks Portuguese and her writing appears in outlets including Ms. Magazine, Mondoweiss, Sojourners, Insight News, and Falastine Magazine, and has been translated into eight languages.

A Fulbright Performing Arts Scholar, Azmera has conducted creative and cultural fieldwork in Brazil (Salvador, Bahia), Palestine, and across the United States. Her scholarship and artistic practice explore how poetry, music, Capoeira, and embodied cultural expression can disrupt cycles of trauma and restore dignity in communities impacted by systemic harm. Her work is informed by womanist theology, hip-hop studies, cultural studies, and diaspora identity, positioning creative practice as central to healing, prevention, and collective transformation.

Azmera is the founder of the Break The Boxes movement and creator of the Capoethic Method, an innovative framework that integrates Capoeira, poetry, and ethics to support personal, organizational, and community development. Currently, Azmera co-directs the Justice Serving Network at Public Works Alliance, where she strengthens the capacity of community-based organizations across California serving youth and families impacted by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

A graduate of Harvard University and the University of Southern California, Azmera also consults nationally and internationally with faith-based, cultural, and public sector organizations seeking to reimagine public health and safety through creativity, culture, and collective care. Her artistic work includes the album Young Spirit Old Soul (2023), the EP Az-a-Mirror (2024), multiple collaborative projects, and directed music video productions, leading to international performances and speaking engagements in cities including New York, London, and San Diego Comic-Con, as well as recognition as a CBS Mornings semifinalist.

Across her roles—as an artist, scholar, and practitioner—she advances a vision of public health that recognizes creativity, spirituality, and cultural expression as critical components of safety, healing, and justice.