Randa Jarrar is an Egyptian-American writer, essayist, and poet, known for her bold exploration of identity, culture, and displacement. Born in 1978 in Chicago to Egyptian parents, Jarrar’s writing often reflects her experiences as an immigrant and her complex relationship…

Bertolt Brecht was a German playwright, poet, and theatre director renowned for his innovative contributions to modern theatre. Born in 1898, Brecht became a major figure in the development of epic theatre, a style that sought to provoke thought and…

Sylvia Rivera was a pioneering transgender activist and one of the key figures in the early LGBTQ+ rights movement in the United States. Born in 1951, she was of Puerto Rican and Venezuelan descent and faced numerous challenges as a…

Laverne Cox is an American actress and LGBTQ+ advocate, best known for her groundbreaking role as Sophia Burset on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. As the first openly transgender woman of color to be nominated for a…

Sister Helen Prejean is a Roman Catholic nun, author, and leading advocate for the abolition of the death penalty in the United States. She is best known for her work as a spiritual advisor to death row inmates, particularly for…

Cornel West is a prominent philosopher, political activist, and public intellectual, best known for his work in the fields of race, social justice, and democracy. He is a professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York and has taught at…

Emma González is a prominent American activist and advocate for gun control, best known for her role in the aftermath of the tragic 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. As one of the survivors, she…

Susan B. Anthony was a prominent social reformer and women’s rights activist in the 19th century, best known for her tireless work toward securing women’s suffrage in the United States. Born in 1820 in Massachusetts, she was raised in a…

Claudette Colvin is a pioneering figure in the American civil rights movement, best known for her act of defiance against segregation in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955, months before Rosa Parks became widely celebrated for a similar act. At the age…

Howard Zinn was an American historian, playwright, and social activist, best known for his book A People’s History of the United States (1980). Zinn’s work focuses on presenting history from the perspective of marginalized groups, challenging the traditional narrative that…