<p>LaTosha is a contributor to <i>The New York Times</i> op-ed page and a Senior Practice Fellow at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. As co-founder of the Black Voters Matter Fund organization, LaTosha is dedicated to increasing the political power of Black people.</p><p>The Black Voters Matter Fund was credited with energizing and turning out voters in Alabama’s Black Belt and playing a decisive role in Doug Jones’ election to the U.S. Senate. </p><p>LaTosha and her Black Voters Matter Fund partners often travel through the South and key swing states on what they call “The Blackest Bus in America” to galvanize voters and stop to voter suppression. She is also the co-founder of Black Voters Matter Capacity Building Institute organization that provides training and support to community-based organizations. </p><p>An in-demand public speaker, LaTosha has distinguished herself as a trusted expert on political strategy, organizing, civil rights, economic development, wealth creation, and rural issues over a 20 year career. She is the founding project director of Grantmakers for Southern Progress and a founding member of the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors’ Gulf Coast Fund for Community Renewal and Ecological Health. She has advised many national and regional foundations, including the Ford Foundation, Open Society Institute, and the Clinton Global Initiative. </p><p>LaTosha is noted to be a “a visionary who is leading the charge for a new, inclusive America” by Notable Publication.</p>
Cofounder of Black Voters Matter Fund, jazz singer, and Senior Practice Fellow at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government
<ul><li><strong>The Death of Democracy: Voter Suppression in the 21st Century</strong></li><li>The cornerstone of democracy is the guaranteed right to vote. However, since 2014 over 33 million American citizens have been dropped from the voting rolls. Most have been moved from the rolls due to a resurgence of voter suppression tactics and politics. Minority voters have been intentionally targeted with these efforts and are disproportionately been impacted. This is perhaps the biggest existential threat to American democracy in modern times. However, as voters and citizens we can solve the voter suppression issue in ways that not only protect the right to vote but ultimately strengthens our democracy.</li><li><strong>Culture and Context Matters! Building Political Power through Storytelling and Strategic Messaging</strong></li><li>We’re currently in an era where people are receiving information and developing political ideologies through non-vetted social media outlets, political soundbites, and opinion based news networks. Political extremists have built a base of supporters by propagating false information, sensationalized conspiracies and theories based in fear and not fact. This has led to the wide spread distrust of American voters in political systems. However, do we build trust in the American democratic system. What reforms are needed and what must we protect at all costs.</li><li><strong>Who Will Save American Democracy? The Role of Women, Young Voters and People of Color in American Politics</strong></li><li>As America becomes younger and more diverse we can predict that an inevitable political shift will occur. What will that shift look like and what will be the long-term impact on democracy? Will identity politics play a role in unifying and/or widening the political divide in America? How will the new majority save and/or expand American Democracy? </li></ul>