About Me
My Background
I am a mother, youth advocate, poet, author and facilitator. I have been writing poetry for over 35 years and have spent over 15 years teaching poetry as visionary resistance to unjust policies and practices. I am a long-time social justice organizer whose work focuses primarily on racial justice and equity issues, as well as advocating for data and digital privacy and consent.
I have authored and co-authored several publications, including but not limited to: Towards Humanity: Shifting the Culture of Anti-Racism Organizing, Coming Out My Box, From Protecting Ourselves to Taking Care of Each Other, and the Digital Defense Playbook: Community Power Tools for Reclaiming Data. I have also consulted on several publications, including A Toolkit for Centering Racial Equity Throughout Data Integration and Technologies for Liberation: Toward Abolitionist Futures. I am also a founding member and former editorial board member of Riverwise Magazine.
How I Serve
I currently serve as the Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Algorithmic Justice League and have served as a convening member of the Detroit Digital Justice Coalition since 2016. I am the former Data Justice Program Director for the Detroit Community Technology Project, former co-lead of Our Data Bodies, former National Organizing Director and Director of Programs for Data for Black Lives, an alumni fellow with the Digital Civil Society Lab at Stanford PACS, an alumni fellow with the Detroit Equity Action Lab (DEAL) and an alumni fellow of Art Matters.
I am founding director of Petty Propolis, a Black women-led artist incubator, primarily focused on cultivating visionary resistance through poetry, literacy and literary workshops, anti-racism facilitation, and social justice initiatives. Petty Propolis organizes regular artist workshops, artist retreats and an artist festival in historic Idlewild, Michigan.
I utilize my talents to facilitate anti-racism workshops and discussions, with a focus on shifting from the optional culture of ally-ship towards the obligatory commitment towards co-liberation and the struggle against anti-Black racism.
I am a past recipient of the Spirit of Detroit Award, the Woman of Substance Award, the Women Creating Caring Communities Award, the Detroit Awesome Award, University of Michigan's Black Law Student Association's Justice Honoree Award, and Wayne State's Center for Peace and Conflict Studies Peacemaker Award. In 2018, I was awarded a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition, was named one of 100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics in 2021, and in 2023, I was honored as a Civil Society AI Policy Leader by the Center for AI and Digital Policy, as well as presented with the Ava Jo Silent Shero Award by the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion.
In addition to my social justice and community organizing work, I perform and present across the globe. My work has appeared on several television, radio and podcast programs.
Services
Facilitation, Workshops, Public Speaking, Consultation
I am focused on cultivating visionary resistance through poetry and literary workshops, anti-racism facilitation, and social justice initiatives.
Available for Bookings
Please contact my booking manager at bookings@alliedmedia.org to coordinate efforts.