Child Abuse Speakers

Alvin Poussaint

A veteran of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Poussaint is a Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School who is renowned as an expert and educated crusader for the African American family within our multicultural society. He has worked closely with Bill Cosby, serving as an advisor on The Cosby Show, and has ...

Victor Rivas Rivers

Born in Cuba, Rivers came to the US at the age of two, endured horrific child abuse and witnessed domestic violence at the hands of his father, which he chronicles in his New York Times bestseller, A Private Family Matter. An actor, athlete, and advocate, Rivers is the national spokesperson for the National ...

Robin Karr-Morse

Co-author of Ghosts from the Nursery: Tracing the Roots of Violence, Karr-Morse presents compelling evidence that violent behavior in children is linked to abuse and neglect that occurs in the first three years of life. As director of The Parenting Institute, she works to provide parents with developmental knowledge ...

Judge Glenda Hatchett

Judge Hatchett is the former Chief Presiding Judge of the Fulton County Juvenile Court in Atlanta. Her highly successful court television series, Judge Hatchett, provides a forum where she can reach beyond her courtroom to a larger and more diverse audience. She is the author of Say What You Mean and Mean What You Say! ...

Geoffrey Canada

Profiled on 60 Minutes, Canada has achieved great success as President and CEO of the Harlem Children’s Zone, an agency that fuses community building with academic achievement to improve the futures of inner city youth. Recently, President Obama launched an initiative to create “Promise Neighborhoods” around ...

Victoria Rowell

Emmy-nominated Rowell has been honored with 12 NAACP Image Awards and is a staunch advocate for foster children. Her memoir, The Women Who Raised Me, reveals the transformational power of mentoring, love, art, and womanhood that inspires and empowers women and families. Her novel, Secrets of a Soap Opera ...

Linda Fairstein

An accomplished public speaker and best-selling crime novelist, Fairstein’s writing is influenced by her experiences as a former prosecutor. An expert on crimes of violence against women and children, her work draws on today’s most pressing societal issues.

Meg Tilly

Oscar nominee and Golden Globe winner for her role in Agnes of God, Meg Tilly is a multi-talented actress as well as a best-selling author of several young adult novels including Gemma and Singing Songs.

Kyle Pruett

Dr. Kyle Pruett is an international authority on child development with a special interest in fatherhood and its effects on children. A pioneer in defining the role of men as fathers, Dr. Pruett focuses on fathers as one of the great, often untapped, resources in their children’s lives. Considered a parenting visionary, ...

Chris Hansen

Currently a veteran correspondent for NBC News' ,Dateline NBC, he has won Emmy Awards for his dramatic coverage and breakthrough investigative reporting on issues ranging from terrorism, homeland security, social crisis, to international strife.

Melissa Moore

Melissa G. Moore is the daughter of Keith Hunter Jesperson, a man infamously known as the "Happy Face Serial Killer," and the author of Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter. As a national best-selling author and speaker, she shares a dynamic message of having the courage to shine through ...

Brenda Combs

Brenda Combs is a symbol of inspiration and perseverance to all who meet her. Fewer than 12 years ago, she was a homeless crack addict, petty criminal, and hopeless wreck who had been shot, beaten and raped during the years she called a freeway underpass home. It took hitting rock bottom for Combs to find the strength to ...

Sheryl WuDunn

As a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author and professional speaker, Sheryl WuDunn offers a unique perspective on current economic, political and social issues such as women's rights. As co-author of the New York Times bestseller, Half the Sky, WuDunn calls attention to the trials and triumphs of women ...

Eli Newberger

Dr. Newberger, a leading figure in the movement to improve the protection and care of children, is renowned for his ability to bring together good sense and science on the main issues of family life. A pediatrician and author of many influential works on child abuse, he teaches at Harvard Medical School and founded the ...

Marilyn Milian

Judge Milian joined The People's Court in January 2001, with more than 19 years of legal experience on the bench, becoming the first female judge to preside over The People's Court. She spent five years in the Miami Country Court in the Domestic Violence, Criminal and Civil Divisions, and in 1999 she was ...

Regina Louise

Triumph of the spirit is the only way to describe Regina Louise’s trials as an orphan discarded by most—if not all the adults in her life. Her life story is one of a child who prevails against all odds, whose resilience shines through each attempt to break her, and whose sheer will to not only survive, but to thrive, ...

Gladys Knight

Graced by Gladys Knight’s exquisite voice, and the dramatic choral arrangements of the Pips, Gladys Knight & The Pips transcended countless musical fads, achieved mainstream and international success, and made some of the most memorable records of our time. Following her incredible success, Knight has become a fervent ...

Patty Duke

A young Oscar winner for her role in The Miracle Worker, Duke stunned the world when she shared her story of living with bipolar disorder in her best-selling book, A Brilliant Madness. Now an outspoken, yet compassionate advocate for those suffering from mental illness, she is honored for her ongoing efforts ...

Dawn Schiller

Domestic violence survivor Dawn Schiller was only 15 years old when she began a sexual relationship with 32-year-old porn star John Holmes, notorious for his later involvement in the 1981 Wonderland murders. She shares her story in the memoir The Road Through Wonderland: Surviving John Holmes.

Steve Pemberton

Stephen Pemberton is the Divisional VP and Chief Diversity of Walgreens and is an expert at diversifying workforces. He is a leading keynote speaker on matters of diversity and inclusion and its importance to the growth of the American industrial complex.