Join us for a conversation on the role of institutions in the movements for inclusion and justice with a particular focus on Black and Latinx LGBTQIA+ artists. This panel is moderated by writer, performer, and cultural organizer Kirya Traber (Community Artist-in-Residence at Lincoln Center). Panelists include writer and activist Charles Rice-González (co-founder of BAAD! The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance); performer and activist Ianne Fields Stewart (Founder/ Co-Facilitator of The Okra Project); and activist Raffy A. Rios (Senior Client Advocacy Specialist with the New York City Anti-Violence Project).

Moderator:
Kirya Traber is a nationally awarded writer and performer. She is the lead Community Artist-in-Residence with Lincoln Center, and is the recipient of multiple awards for her writing and performance, including a NY Emmy Nomination (First Person PBS), Robert Redford’s Sundance Foundation award for Activism in the Arts, the California Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, Congresswoman Barbara Lee’s Certificate of Recognition, and an Astrea Foundation award for Poetry.

Panelists:
Charles Rice-González, born in Puerto Rico and reared in the Bronx, is a writer, LGBTQ activist, co-founder of BAAD! The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance and an Assistant Professor at Hostos Community College. His novel, Chulito, received recognition from the American Library Association and the National Book Critics Circle, he co-edited From Macho to Mariposa: New Gay Latino Fiction, and his play I Just Love Andy Gibb was published in Blacktino Queer Performance: A Critical Anthology.

Raffy A. Rios (Pronouns They/Them/Theirs) is Black Puerto Rican and Non-Binary, born and raised in the Bronx, NYC. Raffy has served LGBTQIA+ communities for over a decade, starting off as a youth volunteer, and working their way up to staff. Raffy currently works as a Senior Client Advocacy Specialist with the New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP), where their focus is supporting survivors of violence with advocacy services and accessing/engaging with mainstream institutions.

Ianne Fields Stewart is a Black, queer, nonbinary, transfeminine, New York-based storyteller working at the intersection of performance and activism. As a performer, Ianne has worked consistently in productions at NYC venues such as: Joe’s Pub, Dixon Place, La Mama, and many more. Recent television appearances include Pose, The Bold Type and the upcoming Netflix series Dash and Lily.