Durryle Brooks, Ph.D, M.A is interdisciplinary research scholar-practitioner and a social justice educator from Baltimore, MD. He is the Founder and CEO of Love and Justice Consulting LLC, an organization that provides leaders with diversity and social justice learning opportunities to increase their capacity to effectively and authentically engage difference. He is currently is a […]

Akil Patterson is the founder and President of Community Advocacy Consultants. Recently Akil was voted in as the First ever Vice Chairman of the LGBTQ Commission in Baltimore City and served on a host of committees such as the DNC LGBTQ Advisory Board. As a Lobbyist, Akil is credited for passing the nation’s most extensive […]

R. Eric Thomas is a national bestselling author, playwright, and Senior Staff writer for ELLE.com where he has written “Eric Reads the News” a daily humor column covering pop culture and politics since 2016. His debut memoir, Here for It, or How to Save Your Soul in America, which Lin-Manuel Miranda hailed as “pop culture-obsessed, […]

Senator Mary Washington is an advocate for Maryland’s 43rd District as a legislator, professor, ally, public policy leader and trail-blazer. Born in Philadelphia, Mary Washington began her professional career teaching at a Catholic elementary school. Her scholarly interests and dedication to serving at-risk populations and urban communities brought her to Baltimore where she earned her […]