Rachel

Rachel Hicks (they/them/theirs) is a Black Queer Feminist who has curated and created a space called the Black Velvet Collective – a space for Black trans, queer, cis woman, non-binary, femmes, and gender non-conforming individuals to gather and fellowship-, of which they are the Black Velveteen. Rachel is a graduate from the University of Memphis. They have been working in the DC non-profit sector for six years. Rachel has organized a union at their workplace, created content specific to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, as well as hosted other events and designed various webinars and presentations. Some of their webinars include: Birthing People: the Importance of Intersectionality in the Reproductive Justice Movement, How Do You Identify? The Importance of Intersectionality, and a four part Empowerment Series, to name a few.They consult with not for profit organizations about racial justice and equity issue areas. They have been studying transformative intersectional frameworks and building their knowledge base around justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Rachel continues to hone their skills as a Black Queer Feminist and the Black Velveteen, using their lived experience as a guide.