American Program Bureau is proud to offer a roster of dynamic speakers who present a fresh dialogue on issues of race, sexuality, disabilities, and diverse communities. These professional speakers not only share their unique cultural experiences, but also provide insight on how diverse communities can achieve change and acceptance. Our roster includes African American, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, Bi-Racial, Disabled, and Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender (GLBT) speakers.
Susan L. Taylor
As editorial director of Essence, Taylor was the driving force behind one of the most celebrated black-owned business success stories in recent times. Her firm belief in personal empowerment and tapping into the power within motivates and inspired her employees to lead Essence to become a successful global ...
Michael Eric Dyson
Named by Essence magazine as one of the 50 most inspiring African Americans, Dyson is one of the nation's most renowned public intellectuals, revitalizing the role with the fervor of an ordained Baptist minister. Called "a street fighter in a suit and tie," he takes on the toughest and most controversial issues of ...
America Ferrera
Best known for her Emmy-winning starring role in Ugly Betty, America Ferrera - an artist ambassador for Save the Children - is also an activist committed to issues surrounding education & children.
Juan Williams
A prize-winning columnist and former editorial writer for The Washington Post, Juan Williams is also a Fox News correspondent and a keynote speaker on issues including diversity, ethics, leadership, media and national issues. There are few voices as clear and intelligent on the power of diversity within today's ...
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 ...
Jesse Jackson
Former Presidential candidate, civil rights activist Reverend Jackson is one of the best known and most influential voices of American political and social activism. Called “the great unifier,” he has played a pivotal role in virtually every movement for empowerment, peace, civil rights, gender equality, and economic ...
Rosie Perez
A film actress and choreographer, AIDS activist and women's rights advocate, Perez has been nominated for both an Emmy and an Oscar. She has recently produced, directed, and starred in Yo Soy Boricua, Pa Que Tu Lo Sepa: I Am Puerto Rican, Just So You Know, which chronicles the lives of Puerto Ricans living in the ...
Richard Carmona
As the 17th Surgeon General, Dr. Carmona developed comprehensive knowledge of the environmental influences on healthy living today. He offers a close look at the epidemic of asthma in young children as well as other issues directly related to the state of our environment and how we can work towards not only a healthy body, ...
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 ...
Tess Gerritsen
Internationally best-selling author Tess Gerritsen took an unusual route to a writing career. A graduate of Stanford University, Gerritsen went on to attend medical school and become a physician. While on maternity leave, she began to write fiction. Eight suspense novels later, she has never looked back.
Luis Alberto Urrea
An award-winning poet and essayist, Urrea authored the epic novel The Hummingbird’s Daughter, as well as the The Devil’s Highway, a best-selling nonfiction account of Mexican immigrants crossing over the US border. His latest book, Into the Beautiful North, is lauded for having Urrea’s ...
Daymond John
Credited with creating the urban apparel market, Daymond John is the founder of FUBU & the branding guru on ABC's Shark Tank. His message draws on his experience as an entrepreneur & consultant.
Maria Hinojosa
For 25 years, Maria Hinojosa has helped tell America's untold stories, many around themes of diversity and the cultural richness of the American experience. She is the anchor and editor of NPR's "Latino USA," a reporter for PBS's Frontline, and anchor of the Emmy-winning talk show One-on-One.
Terry McMillan
Since McMillan's breakout novel Waiting to Exhale surged onto The New York Times bestseller list, critics and readers alike have been captivated by her irreverent, often-hilarious take on the issues faced by contemporary African American women. With several of her bestsellers, including Waiting to ...
Wes Moore
Wes Moore is a youth advocate, keynote speaker, Army combat veteran, promising business leader and the best-selling author of The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates - contrasting his childhood choices against another Wes Moore's who was eventually imprisoned.
Julian Bond
Beginning with his pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement, Julian Bond has always been on the cutting edge of social change and leadership. Legendary as the first black US vice presidential nominee and former Chairman of the NAACP, Bond continues to deliver a powerful message of equality, freedom, and justice with a ...
Sonia Nazario
Sonia Nazario, a projects reporter for The Los Angeles Times, has spent more than two decades reporting and writing about social issues, earning her dozens of national awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing for her series, “Enrique’s Journey,” about the experiences of Latin American children ...
Ted Childs
As IBM's Vice President of Global Workforce Diversity, Childs oversaw IBM's model workforce diversity programs and policies. Called "perhaps the most effective diversity executive on the planet" by Fast Company, he helps companies, organizations, and communities understand the importance of diversity education to ...
Herman Boone
When he became head football coach at T.C. Williams High School, Boone faced the daunting challenge of uniting a racially divided team, and through his hard work and dedication, he led the Titans to a championship title. Portrayed by Denzel Washington in the highly acclaimed film, Remember the Titans, Boone delivers ...
Erin Gruwell
Erin Gruwell leveraged the power of education to transform Long Beach's "unteachables," by teaching tolerance through literature and writing. Her tenacity and commitment to her students is chronicled in The Freedom Writers Diary - How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around ...
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