Fellows

Liberation economy fellowship

Building on our efforts as a national movement support organization, the Liberation Economy Fellowship Program is rooted in our commitment to elevating the leadership, power, and influence of leaders of color. Guided by a group of experienced fellows and informed by our belief that to challenge and replace harmful dominant narratives, we must get our new narratives in front of the right people. The Liberation Economy Fellowship aims to accelerate our efforts to dismantle the Oppression Economy, where racism is profitable, and build a Liberation Economy where all people of color thrive by:

  • Strengthening, socializing, and accelerating LibGen’s economic worldview, our Liberation Guarantees, and our relationships in communities working to address systemic economic harm facing people of color.
  • Increasing the number of LibGen champions and Liberation Economy partners at the local, state, and federal levels to actively engage, support, and refine LibGen’s policy idea and efforts to establish a Liberation Economy.
  • Amplifying the profiles, work, and expertise of individual grassroots and movement leaders working to transform the economy so that all people of color can prosper.

The Fellows

The Liberation Economy Fellowship is guided by a small group of multifaceted leaders with over a decade of experience in progressive advocacy, movement building, and organizing, which includes:

Jasmine Banks

Jasmine is a former non-profit co-founder, digital organizer and strategist, Chief Marketing Officer, and small business owner. Based out of Washington, D.C., Jasmine most recently spent the last five years leading UnKoch My Campus, an organization dedicated to addressing the impact of far-right billionaires leveraging their philanthropic donations in higher education to erode democracy.

Jasmine received both her B.S. in Psychology and Communications and her M.A. in Community Counseling from John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. In addition to her roles at UnKoch My Campus, Jasmine is a national speaker on radical self-care for people of color and a national workshop facilitator for “Cross Movement Collaboration.” In 2019, Jasmine was a part of the Rockwood Strengthening Democracy cohort, and she is honored to be a part of the Higher Heights Black Women Civic Leader Fellowship 2020. She currently served on an advisory committee for Liberation in a Generation and she is a Democracy and Belonging Forum participant with the Othering and Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley. She continues to support numerous organizations interested in developing and implementing anti-oppressive strategies as an organizer and consultant.

A mother of four, a proud Southerner, and a passionate supporter of her queer Black community, Jasmine also co-founded Reconcile Arkansas and currently co-produces “Parenting is Political” with her wife, Mo. She has spoken with members of the media in many formats, from print (The New York Times Magazine) to podcasts, and a variety of outlets online, including The Nation, Progressive, WSJ, Teen Vogue, and more.

Jasmine Banks
Kofi Hunt

Kofi is is a progressive organizer based out of Saint Petersburg, Florida. Dedicated to public service, Kofi began working as an organizer in 2012 for SEIU’s Swing Districts campaign as part of the Fight for Fair Economy Since then, he has worked with many of Florida’s biggest progressive non-profits, including, most recently, Catalyst Movement Building Group, to create new legislative strategies and marketing content around their campaign goals. As part of his work, Kofi has also supported the efforts of progressive groups like Florida for All and Fight for 15 Florida, where he helped pass Amendment 2 on the 2020 ballot, setting Florida on a path to $15 an hour.

Kofi Hunt
Trevor Smith

Trevor is a writer, researcher, and strategist focused on topics such as racial inequality, wealth inequality, reparations, and narrative change. He is the co-founder and executive director of the BLIS Collective, a movement bridging narrative infrastructure organization that sparks radical collaboration and narrative alignment between and within Black, Indigenous, and progressive social movements to repair, decolonize, and transform culture. Previously, he was the Director of Narrative Change at Liberation Ventures, a field builder fueling the movement for Black-led reparations, where he launched the ‘Reparations Narrative Lab’ (RNL). The RNL is a first-of-its-kind creative space designed to build narrative power behind reparations. He previously held program and communications positions at the Surdna Foundation, New York Civil Liberties Union, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and M+R Strategic Services. He currently resides in Lenapehoking what we now know as New York City.

Trevor Smith

 

Over the next six months, the Fellows will join LibGen in supporting organizing groups with narratives and policies that advance a Liberation Economy. Together, we will be hosting conversations across the country, listening and learning from those building power to sharpen LibGen’s economic worldview and our Liberation Guarantees and boost on-the-ground efforts to win economic liberation.  Stay tuned for recaps of what we’re hearing. 

Check out our sister org Liberation in a Generation Action Liberation in a Generation Action