Our Mental Health Speakers bring mental wellness and resilience to the forefront of the conversation. They offer hope and optimism as they facilitate open discussions around challenging subjects such as suicide awareness and self-injury.
Sohaila Abdulali
<p><span style="color: rgb(124, 131, 137);">Sohaila Abdulali was sexually assaulted as a teenager in India, promised to remain silent in return for her life, and has not stopped talking since. Her work as an activist, a counselor, and an author has taken her around the world. </span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(124, 131, 137);">Drawing from her own experiences and those of thousands of other survivors, Abdulali inspires audiences to reconsider the way we talk about sexual assault and gender roles in society.
Demetrius Harmon
<p>Born and raised in Detroit, Demetrius taught himself graphic design in 3rd grade. By the time he reached 7th grade, he had used those skills to start a clothing brand that would eventually become his current clothing brand, "You Matter by Demetrius Harmon." </p><p>In 9th grade he started posting YouTube videos as a way to cope with a change of schools.
Cameron Kasky
<p>Cameron Kasky is an American activist and advocate against gun violence who co-founded the student-led gun control advocacy group Never Again MSD.</p>
<p>He is also the co-founder of March for Our Lives nationwide student protest in March 2018. Kasky is a survivor of the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He’s been featured in <i>Time Magazine</i>, and has appeared in dozens of talk shows, podcasts and news station throughout the U.S.</p>
Inky Johnson
<p>Inky Johnson, the former collegiate football player permanently injured on the field, shares his dramatic story of overcoming hardship and life-threatening injury. His motivational words inspire others to embrace adversity, face their own daily challenges, and live life with a greater purpose.</p><p>Inky is a former University of Tennessee defensive back who refused to allow misfortune on the football field to stop him from pursuing a life of purpose.
Susan Burton
<p>A leader in criminal justice reform, Susan Burton shares her courageous odyssey in overcoming tragedy, addiction, and incarceration to help others like her find a new way of life.</p>
<p>For two decades, Susan has been a leading figure in the criminal justice reform movement. Her award-winning civil and human rights work has been instrumental in raising the visibility of the struggles and barriers faced by formerly incarcerated people, and in changing the narrative of mass incarcerated women.</p>
Kevin Hines
Kevin Hines, who survived a suicide attempt by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge, inspires and educates others about living mentally healthy in the hopes of preventing more suicides.
Andrea Petersen
<p>Drawing on her personal journey with mental wellness, Andrea Petersen equips audiences with powerful insights on how to manage and conquer anxiety and panic attacks. </p><p>Andrea is a nationally celebrated health, psychology, and neuroscience journalist and contributing writer at <i>The Wall Street Journal</i>. She brings mental health awareness to millions of readers with her thoughtful reporting on a range of important wellness topics, from student mental health and cognitive behavioral therapy to suicide, and insomnia.
Zeke Thomas
<p>Zeke Thomas is a renowned Open Format DJ and Producer.
Frank Warren
<p>Frank Warren demonstrates the power of sharing your hopes, dreams, fears and failures and how PostSecret became the catalyst for his passionate commitment to mental health advocacy.</p><p>What started as a community mail art project in which people anonymously share never-before-voiced secrets has since captured our collective imagination and evolved into a worldwide phenomenon.
Jeannette Walls
From the pages of her #1 New York Times best-selling book and the critically-acclaimed recently released film, Jeannette Walls moves you to realize the power of the human spirit as she inspires courage in the face of new and longstanding fears, and reveals how our weaknesses can be our greatest strengths.