Kevin Powell’s life was changed forever the first time he read The Autobiography of Malcolm X as an 18-year-old college student. He had never heard of Malcolm until that point, did not know any Black history either. That read set Kevin on course of his life work: writer and human and civil rights activist. Today he is one of the most celebrated political, cultural, literary, and hip-hop voices in America. He is a prolific writer and a GRAMMY-nominated poet; Kevin is a heavily sought-after public speaker who has lectured in all 50 states and on five continents. A native son of Jersey City, New Jersey, the human and civil rights activist has been engaged with nearly every democratic movement of the latter 20th and early 21st centuries, either as a servant-leader, a behind-the-scenes advocate, or in a leadership position with fellow writers, artists, and change agents. Additionally, Kevin has directed, co-written, and co-produced his debut feature-length documentary, When We Free The World. It is a never-before-seen deep dive about healthy manhood versus toxic manhood, inclusive of Black males of all kinds—straight, gay, transgender, disabled, short-statured, formerly incarcerated, college-educated, while also representing five generations of Black men and boys. Read more

Lawrence Hamm, a candidate in New Jersey’s Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate in 2020, has been involved in every major social movement in the state for the last fifty years. As a nineteen-year-old, student activist from Arts High School in Newark, he was appointed to the Newark Board of Education in 1971 by Kenneth Gibson, the city’s first Black mayor. Hamm was inspired to become a community activist because of the example of internationally known playwright/poet/activist Amiri Baraka. A graduate of Princeton University, he was part of the student leadership cadre that had a major campus anti-apartheid protest in the 1970s, years before the anti-apartheid movement became dominant on American campuses. He founded the People’s Organization for Progress (POP) in 1983. POP, an independent, grassroots organization, became a recognized leader in New Jersey’s anti-apartheid and Million Man March movements. A proud father of three daughters who are Rutgers graduates, he has been involved in fighting for quality education, employment opportunities and access to health care and against racial profiling and police brutality. POP, joined by Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and other activist organizations, led a successful, nonviolent protest and rally in Newark of more than ten thousand after the 2020 murder of George Floyd. Read more

Rosemari Mealy, JD, PhD, is an activist-educator. She has been acknowledged for her long history of engaged community activism and contributions to artistic innovation, education, scholarly endeavors, and international human rights struggles. Her participation in international forums with non-governmental organizations (NGO’s), has garnered global recognition and respect for her advocacy in defense of US political prisoners, gender equality and the illegal imposition of US economic and political sanction against sovereign nations including Cuba. She was a member of both the Philadelphia and New Haven Chapters of the Black Panther Party ( BPP). Prof. Mealy has taught at numerous colleges and universities including: The City University of NY ( CUNY), Florida international University (FIU), and invited lecturer in the Universidad de La Habana’s-Facultad Preparatoria de Idiomas. Read more

Zayid Muhammad has a radical activist profile of over 45 years! He is a proud cub of the Black Panther Party. He is now the lead organizer for NY’s Malcolm X Commemoration Committee and its last original member. He was recently featured in the critically-acclaimed Netflix documentary Who Killed Malcolm X? A gun violence survivor and peacemaker, he is the New Jersey Strategist for Equal Justice USA, playing a key role in their Community based Violence Intervention support efforts. He is also the organizer for NJCAP or New Jersey Communities for Accountable Policing, a statewide coalition of organizations pushing for accountable policing in New Jersey with a special drive to secure a strong bill for strong Civilian Complaint Review Boards building on the original model put forth by the City of Newark NJ. It is an initiative of the ACLU of New Jersey. He is an associate producer for All Politics R Local, a weekly online HipHop Political Talk Radio Show formerly based at Rutgers University, Newark. Read more.

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