Black History Month

A futurist poet, artist, and astronaut-explorer, Dr. Sian Leo Proctor shares her extraordinary story of breaking barriers and reaching for the stars.

Dr. Sian Leo Proctor is a visionary artist, futurist, and explorer who made history as the first artist officially selected to go to space with the SpaceX Inspiration4 mission—also becoming the first African-American woman to pilot a spaceship. 

<p>The innovative creator of culturally-inclusive AI software ChatBlackGPT, Erin Reddick provides expert insights into the ever-changing landscape of AI and the importance of inclusive technology development.</p><p>Erin Reddick has forged a vital path in the technology industry. With a career encompassing significant roles at major tech companies including Meta, Microsoft, and AWS, her most impactful contribution to the field is the creation of ChatBlackGPT, an AI software providing perspectives from the Black and African American communities.

<p>Halim Flowers shares his transformational journey while incarcerated for 22 years, helping audiences overcome their obstacles and find their purpose.  </p><p>In 1997, Halim Flowers was arrested at the age of 16 and given two life sentences. His experiences were filmed in the Emmy award-winning documentary <em>Thug Life In DC</em>. During his incarceration, Halim discovered a love for literature and the arts, and began writing, painting, and freestyle-rapping.

<p>Daryl Davis is committed to helping people ignite positive change—using conversation to build bridges.</p><p>His jaw-dropping experiences speak for themselves. For nearly 40 years, he’s engaged leaders of the KKK and White supremacist groups face to face to find the answer to a question: “How can you hate me when you don’t even know me?” </p><p>That question stemmed from his first encounter with racism at age ten when he was pelted with rocks, bottles, and soda cans by a handful of White spectators while marching in a parade.

<p>Autumn Rose *Miskweminanocsqua (Raspberry Star Woman)* Williams was born and raised on the Shinnecock Reservation in Southampton, New York. She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications and a Minor in Business.

<p>Fredrika Newton, the daughter of activists and former member of the Black Panther Party, says she learned how to march before she learned how to walk. Activism has always been in her blood, but no one was more surprised than her the day that Black Panther Party co-founder, Huey P. Newton, showed up at her parents’ home for lunch.</p><p>Her mother, a Jewish housing activist and real estate agent for the Party, invited Huey over when Fredrika was home from college.

<p>In today’s ever-changing political landscape, Yamiche Alcindor has become a go-to voice in analyzing the most critical issues of our time for Democrats and Republicans alike.</p><p>Since early 2022, she has been the Washington correspondent for NBC News covering the Biden administration, the impact of federal policies on communities and issues at the intersection of race, culture and politics.

<p>The Black and Latina daughter of a working-class family, Victoria Pratt learned to treat everyone with dignity, no matter their background. When she became Newark Municipal Court’s chief judge, she knew well the inequities that poor, mentally ill, Black, and brown people faced in the criminal justice system.</p><p>Judge Victoria has gained national and international acclaim for her commitment to reform the criminal justice system.

<p>Named one of the 150 most powerful African Americans by <i>Ebony</i> magazine, Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, an American Book Award recipient and two-time NAACP Image Award winner, “is reshaping what it means to be a public intellectual by becoming the most visible black academic of his time.” </p><p>Dr.

Michelle Alexander’s acclaimed best-seller, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness released a special 10th anniversary edition in January 2020.