Brittany Packnett is an award-winning national leader in social justice. Cited by President Barack Obama as a leader who's "voice is going to be making a difference for years to come," Packnett is an unapologetic educator, organizer, writer, and speaker. Known as @MsPackyetti on social media, Brittany has become a sought after voice in the work of social change and empowerment.
A former teacher, policy expert, and non-profit executive director, Packnett has committed her life and career to justice. She currently plays many roles, all focused on freedom. She serves as Teach For America’s Vice President of National Community Alliances, where she leads partnerships with communities of color and with them, is crafting the organization’s first civil rights and equity agenda. Packnett was a Ferguson protestor and continues in activism as, among other things, co-founder of Campaign Zero, a policy platform to end police violence. She is a featured mainstay on Pod Save The People, offering accessible analysis of news and culture, and recently penned the personal series 'Falling In Love' for Amy Poehler's Smart Girls.
Recently, Packnett launched Love + Power, a hub created to inspire, empower, and outfit everyday people to seismically shift society. She was an appointed member of the Ferguson Commission and President Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing. Today, she continues to advocate for urgent systemic change at critical decision making tables and through national and international media.
An alum of Washington University in St. Louis, American University in Washington, and a current Aspen Institute Education fellow, Packnett has graced the cover of Essence Magazine, been named one of TIME Magazine’s 12 New Faces of Black Leadership, to LinkedIn’s Next Wave, received the Peter Jennings Award for Civic Leadership and shares the number 3 spot on Politico’s 2016 50 Most Influential list. She has been honored by Emily's List, The Women's Choice Awards, the NAACP, Ebony Magazine, Public Allies, and Washington University, among others. She is a proud Advisory Board Member of Rise To Run, an organization committed to recruiting grassroots, diverse, progressive women to run for office. Ultimately, Packnett is a proud Black woman who believes that freedom is within our grasp- as long as we unleash love, and build our power, because “power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice.” (MLK)