Speakers
Nikole Hannah-Jones
NIKOLE HANNAH-JONES is the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project and a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine. The book version of The 1619 Project and as well as the 1619 Project children’s book, Born on the Water, were instant #1 New York Times bestsellers. Her 1619 Project is now a six-part docuseries on Hulu. Hannah-Jones has spent her career investigating racial inequality and injustice, and her reporting has earned her the MacArthur Fellowship, known as the Genius grant, a Peabody Award, two George Polk Awards and the National Magazine Award three times.
Michaela Angela Davis
Michaela Angela Davis is the creator and executive producer of HULU’s The Hair Tales, a dynamic six-part docu-series celebrating Black women’s identity, beauty, culture, and humanity, uniquely expressed through the stories in hair. Davis collaborated with Mariah Carey on “The Meaning of Mariah Carey” a memoir of her identity – an instant #1 New York Times Bestseller.
Ibtihaj Muhammad
Ibtihaj Muhammad is an entrepreneur, author, activist, and Olympic medalist in fencing. A five-time Senior World medalist and World Champion, in 2016 she became the first American woman to compete in the Olympics in hijab, and the first Muslim-American woman to win an Olympic medal.
Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer
Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer is a scholar-artist-activist. Her current project, Umi’s Archive, is an interdisciplinary research project that that engages everyday Black women’s thought to investigate key questions of archives and power. In 2018, Su’ad was profiled as one of 25 influential American Muslims by CNN.
Folly Bah Thibault
Folly Bah Thibault’s career in television broadcasting began in the radio studios of Voice of America in Washington D.C. She joined Al Jazeera English in 2010 and relocated to Qatar. The New African Magazine has named Folly, one of the ‘Most Influential Africans’ working today.
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Dr. Maurice Jackson
Dr. Maurice Jackson teaches in the History and African American Studies Departments and is an Affiliated Professor of Music (Jazz) at Georgetown University. He is the author of Let This Voice Be Heard: Anthony Benezet, Father of Atlantic Abolitionism, co-editor of African-Americans and the Haitian Revolution, of Quakers and their Allies in the Abolitionist Cause,1754-1808 and DC Jazz: Stories of Jazz Music in Washington, DC. His author talk will feature his new book titled Rhythms of Resistance and Resilience: How Black Washingtonians Used Music and Sports in the Fight for Equality.
Dr. Theri A. Pickens
Dr. Therí A. Pickens received her undergraduate degree in Comparative Literature from Princeton University (P’05) and her PhD in Comparative Literature from UCLA (2010). She is a poet-scholar who focuses on Arab American Studies, Black Studies, Comparative Literature, and Disability Studies.
Dr. Stephan Buoro
Dr. Stephen Buoro is a Nigerian novelist based in United Kingdom. He was chosen by The Observer UK as one of the ‘10 Best New Novelists for 2023’. His debut novel, The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa, was lauded by The Economist as being ‘among the best’ coming-of-age stories in contemporary African literature. It was shortlisted for the Nero Book Awards in the ‘Debut Fiction’ category, the L.A. Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, and the Betty Trask Prize. Stephen’s writing has appeared in The Observer and The New York Times.
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Rachel L. Swarns
Rachel L. Swarns is a journalism professor at New York University and a contributing writer for The New York Times. She is the author of American Tapestry and a co-author of Unseen. Her work has been recognized and supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Ford Foundation, the Biographers International Organization, the Leon Levy Center for Biography, the MacDowell Artist Residency Program, and others.
Dr. Darius M. Walker
Dr. Darius M. Walker is a dedicated husband and loving father of two wonderful children. Professionally trained in scientific writing through his Doctoral studies in Biophysics and Genetics, Darius displays the ability to draft difficult concepts. Dr. Walker has enhanced his writing skills through his research administration and technology innovation career track.
Dr. Chika Unigwe
Dr. Chika Unigwe was born and raised in Enugu, Nigeria. Her works have been widely translated and recognized with numerous prizes and fellowships across three continents. She currently serves as the interim coordinator of the Creative Writing Program at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, Georgia, where she is also a professor of creative writing. Her latest novel is The Middle Daughter.
Nicole Alexander
Nicole Alexander is a highly experienced Applied Behavior Specialist with a strong background in the United States, earning her undergraduate degree in Child and Adolescent Behavior from California University of Northridge. She pursued her Master’s in Psychology with a specialization in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and has over 15 years of experience in clinical settings, parent training, shadow teaching, and vocational assistance.
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Tope Folarin
Tope Folarin is a Nigerian-American writer based in Washington DC. He serves as Director of the Institute for Policy Studies and the Lannan Visiting Lecturer in Creative Writing at Georgetown University. He is the recipient of the Caine Prize for African Writing, the Whiting Award for Fiction, and a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, among other awards. He was educated at Morehouse College and the University of Oxford, where he earned two Masters’ degrees as a Rhodes Scholar. His debut novel, A Particular Kind of Black Man, was published by Simon & Schuster.
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Dr. Anita Gonzalez
Dr. Anita Gonzalez (Ph.D.) is a professor of performing arts and African American studies at Georgetown University and a co-Founder of their Racial Justice Institute. She was recently elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Her edited and authored books are Shipping Out: Race, Performance and Labor at Sea, Performance, Dance and Political Economy, Black Performance Theory, Afro-Mexico: Dancing Between Myth and Reality and Jarocho’s Soul.