Search

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Giovanni Blair McKenzie is a nationally acclaimed and award-winning advocate, speaker and writer. Giovanni is the founder of the Queer Intersections Force, a youth ambassador for the Human Rights Campaign and an advocate for the #intersectionality movement, while being a proud gender-fluid immigrant from the West Indies.

Dean Hamer is a National Institutes of Science scientist emeritus, a New York Times book-of-the-year author, and Emmy Award-winning filmmaker with a long history of communicating complex and controversial ideas to diverse audiences. He formed Qwaves with partner Joe Wilson to produce films that emanate from the voices of those on the outside and compel viewers to question and to act. Their Sundance-supported PBS documentary Out in the Silence was used as a tool for grassroots anti-bullying advocacy in small towns and rural areas communities across the country. They moved to Hawai'i in 2011 to

Melissa is a student-activist in New Jersey, focusing on a variety of education issues, such as student voice and high-stakes testing. She is in the integrated bachelor's and master of arts in teaching program in urban education at the College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey. Melissa is also a coordinating committee member of the Young Teachers Collective.

Molly is an activist focusing on issues of education and racial and socioeconomic injustice. A graduate of the University of Virginia, she will begin pursuing her master's degree in teaching at the University of Georgia in fall 2015. Molly is passionate about making sure all students get the education they deserve and is working on a book project on teacher activism. She is also a coordinating member of the Young Teachers Collective.