Ayọ Tometi

EXCLUSIVE
  • Human Rights Leader and Co-Founder, #BlackLivesMatter
  • Founder, Diaspora Rising and Former Executive Director, Black Alliance for Just Immigration
  • Recipient, Coretta Scott King Center Legacy Award
  • One of the Most Influential Women of the Century, USA Today and TIME

Ayọ (fka Opal) Tometi is one of the most influential human rights leaders of the century according to TIME magazine. As one of the three women co-founders of Black Lives Matter digital platform and chapter-based network, her name is etched in history. Hailed as a feminist freedom fighter, Ayọ is respected for her track record of uniting communities, and for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender. In 2019 she completed nearly a decade of service as the Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the first immigrant rights organization for people of African descent in the United States. Ayọ is a trusted advisor and serves on the board of  Atlantic Fellows for Racial Equity and the International Living Futures Institute. She has graced the cover of magazines because of her achievements and received numerous recognitions including an honorary PhD, being named most influential women of the century by USA Today, TIME Magazine, and Most Influential People by Forbes, Marie Claire, Glamour and Cosmopolitan magazines. Ayọ was also honored by the City University of New York (CUNY) with a scholarship in her name to support immigrant students pursuing law degrees. In 2019 she also received the Coretta Scott King Center Award and Douglass 200 Award, and is currently featured in a video installation at the Smithsonian’s National Museum for African History and Culture for her contributions in thought-leadership for the betterment of the diaspora. As the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, Ayọ has set her movement sights on an even bigger struggle: uplifting Black lives worldwide. In 2020 she founded Diaspora Rising, a new media and advocacy hub dedicated to strengthening the bonds amongst members of the global Black family. Additionally, she's focused on other social enterprises. With nearly two decades as a human rights champion, she still feels her work has only just begun.

 



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Ayọ Tometi headshot
Past Hosts Include:
  • Dominican University
  • Gustavus Adolphus College
  • National Education Association
  • Latham & Watkins LLP
  • The Wise Fund
  • African-American Community Service Agency
  • City of Sao Paulo
Rave Reviews About Ayọ Tometi as a Speaker
Ms. Tometi was a fantastic, engaging speaker. The students she met with felt inspired by her words and her passion for social justice activism. In the current sociopolitical period we are living in, having Ms. Tometi as the keynote speaker for Black History Month had an immense impact on our campus. We look forward to continuing to follow her work!

Opal Tometi on the Chauvin verdict | CNN Amanpour - Get Sharable Link
Talks & Conversations with Ayọ Tometi
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Social Justice in the U.S. and the World

Award-winning human rights leader AYỌ TOMETI is renowned for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender, as well as her track record of uniting communities. As a Co-Founder of Black Lives Matter and the Founder of Diaspora Rising, Tometi is a heralded as a feminist freedom fighter uniqu ...

Award-winning human rights leader AY TOMETI is renowned for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender, as well as her track record of uniting communities. As a Co-Founder of Black Lives Matter and the Founder of Diaspora Rising, Tometi is a heralded as a feminist freedom fighter uniquely positioned to offer insights on the challenges and opportunities of social justice movements in the U.S. and internationally.

Racial Bias in the Future of Tech

Global human rights champion and co-founder of #BlackLivesMatter AYỌ TOMETI is uniquely positioned to speak on the real dangers of racial bias that are inherent to artificial intelligence and encoded into algorithms, which impact all areas of life and work. With her background in research, immigrati ...

Global human rights champion and co-founder of #BlackLivesMatter AY TOMETI is uniquely positioned to speak on the real dangers of racial bias that are inherent to artificial intelligence and encoded into algorithms, which impact all areas of life and work. With her background in research, immigration policy, and proven track record uniting communities around desired change, Tometi offers insights that have a major impact on individuals and organizations.

Intersectionality and Racial Justice

Human rights advocate AYỌ TOMETI is renowned for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender, and has made a groundbreaking impact with her work for social justice. As a Co-Founder of Black Lives Matter and advisor to organizations worldwide, Tometi offers insights about the intersection ...

Human rights advocate AY TOMETI is renowned for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender, and has made a groundbreaking impact with her work for social justice. As a Co-Founder of Black Lives Matter and advisor to organizations worldwide, Tometi offers insights about the intersectionality of her personal experience as well as the major movements for social justice, collective liberation, and how we can cultivate change in our workplaces and our lives.

Social Change and Sustainability

Award-winning advocate, AYỌ TOMETI is renowned for her work as a human rights leader and her thought leadership on race, immigration, gender, and sustainability. As the Founder of Diaspora Rising and through her service on the Board of Directors for the International Living Future Institute, Tometi ...

Award-winning advocate, AY TOMETI is renowned for her work as a human rights leader and her thought leadership on race, immigration, gender, and sustainability. As the Founder of Diaspora Rising and through her service on the Board of Directors for the International Living Future Institute, Tometi focuses on developing compelling visions for the future that encompass the intersectional and overlapping goals of social justice and ecological restoration.

Women’s Health and Wellness: Support Along the Childbearing Continuum

Human rights leader AYỌ TOMETI has been a long-time advocate of healthcare and wellness for women and gender non-conforming people, with a focus on Black maternal healthcare. Tometi serves on the board of Mama Glow, a premiere maternity lifestyle brand and birth doula training program, and she share ...

Human rights leader AY TOMETI has been a long-time advocate of healthcare and wellness for women and gender non-conforming people, with a focus on Black maternal healthcare. Tometi serves on the board of Mama Glow, a premiere maternity lifestyle brand and birth doula training program, and she shares her thought leadership on how we can better support those giving birth and women’s healthcare overall.

Self-Care is the Key to Wellness

Global human rights icon AYỌ TOMETI balances advocacy work, activism, and serial entrepreneurship to make a historic impact on society and the world, and she is passionate about the self-care practice that supports her work. Self-care plays a vital role in our ability to face challenges, build resil ...

Global human rights icon AY TOMETI balances advocacy work, activism, and serial entrepreneurship to make a historic impact on society and the world, and she is passionate about the self-care practice that supports her work. Self-care plays a vital role in our ability to face challenges, build resilience, and cultivate supportive communities at work and in life. Tometi offers actionable strategies and powerful insights about the value self-care holds for individuals and organizations in this high-impact and inspiring talk.

Cultivating DEI to Build the World We Want

Thought leader and social entrepreneur AYỌ TOMETI has wide-ranging experience in the corporate landscape and offers key insights about how companies and organizations can cultivate strong DEI philosophies in their workplaces to build a better world. From supporting BIPOC-led businesses through corpo ...

Thought leader and social entrepreneur AY TOMETI has wide-ranging experience in the corporate landscape and offers key insights about how companies and organizations can cultivate strong DEI philosophies in their workplaces to build a better world. From supporting BIPOC-led businesses through corporate commitments and investment, to building transparency and equity in the workplace, Tometi offers her unique perspective and actionable strategies for leaders looking to take meaningful next steps.

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<p>Ayọ (formerly known as Opal) Tometi changes her name, choosing one deeply connected to her Nigerian ancestry</p>

Ayọ (formerly known as Opal) Tometi changes her name, choosing one deeply connected to her Nigerian ancestry

The Co-Founder of #BlackLivesMatter changed her name from Opal to Ayọ, choosing a name deeply connected to her Nigerian ancestry. AYTOMETI shared her thoughts about her name change with Ebony

“It’s been really important for me to connect more deeply especially in light of last year’s uprisings, that not only took place here in the U.S., but in Nigeria and different parts of the Black world,” Tometi shared. “Finding the strength and wisdom within our cultures can be so healing... The significance of my name transition is not only rooted in the  desire to honor my heritage, but after reflection throughout this pandemic I wanted to remind myself that the pursuit of justice is ultimately to attain joy for all of us. With all the social upheaval, hardship, and heaviness, I wanted to begin to embody the deepest desire of my heart which is not mere survival, but thriving.” 

Ayọ, a derivative of her middle name, means joy in the Yoruba language, Ebony shared. “It’s an expression of inner wholeness, pleasure, and happiness,” explains Tometi, “and an outward pursuit of fulfillment and purpose.”

<p><span>Ay</span><span>ọ </span>Tometi and the Black Lives Matter movement nominated for a 2021 Nobel Peace Prize</p>

AyTometi and the Black Lives Matter movement nominated for a 2021 Nobel Peace Prize

AY TOMETI was nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize as a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. The Black Lives Matter movement was nominated for calling attention to racial injustice across the world and creating systemic change. To be considered for such an incredible award is a huge honor, showing the immense influence Tometi is making on the world around us. Tometi brings this immense presence to events, as an activist who sparked a global movement, now being considered for one of the most prestigious honors in the world. 

<p><strong>Virtual Programming: For more than 20 years, <span>Ay</span><span>ọ </span>Tometi has been a globally recognized human rights advocate, strategist, and writer, best known for her role as a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement</strong></p>

Virtual Programming: For more than 20 years, AyTometi has been a globally recognized human rights advocate, strategist, and writer, best known for her role as a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement

For more than 20 years, AY TOMETI has been a globally recognized human rights advocate, strategist, and writer, best known for her role as a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. Widely respected as a millennial trailblazer and immigration policy expert, Tometi has been lauded for her creativity and bold leadership. In addition to her work with #BlackLivesMatter, Ayọ serves as the Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the first national immigrant rights organization that advances migrant rights and racial justice for people of African descent. Currently, she’s being featured in the National Museum for African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), and was a recipient of the Vh1 Everyday Trailblazer honor and Frederick Douglass 200 Awardee for her groundbreaking contributions to contemporary social movements and In 2019, Tometi, Garza, and Cullors (the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement) received a PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Literary Award for When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir.
 
With appearances on CNN, MSNBC, BET; featured in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, InStyle, Seventeen, Huffington Post, and nearly every other major publication; and named “A New Civil Rights Leader” by CNN and the Los Angeles Times, Tometi’s lifetime of work and commitment to social change has become a staple in the modern movement for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Tometi was honored as one of the Women of the Year Award by Glamour Magazine, recipient of the BETs Change Agent Award, and considered to be among the world’s fifty greatest leaders by Fortune, POLITICO, and Marie Claire Magazines. From college and universities to boardrooms and trade associations, groups committed to advancing justice and equity in the workplace and world love Tometi. She can bring the substantive work of a researcher combined with the professional and personal experience of a black woman in America committed to creating a world that works for everyone.

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Biography

Ayọ (fka Opal) Tometi is one of the most influential human rights leaders of the century according to TIME magazine. As one of the three women co-founders of Black Lives Matter digital platform and chapter-based network, her name is etched in history. Hailed as a feminist freedom fighter, Ayọ is respected for her track record of uniting communities, and for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender. In 2019 she completed nearly a decade of service as the Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the first immigrant rights organization for people of African descent in the United States. Ayọ is a trusted advisor and serves on the board of  Atlantic Fellows for Racial Equity and the International Living Futures Institute. She has graced the cover of magazines because of her achievements and received numerous recognitions including an honorary PhD, being named most influential women of the century by USA Today, TIME Magazine, and Most Influential People by Forbes, Marie Claire, Glamour and Cosmopolitan magazines. Ayọ was also honored by the City University of New York (CUNY) with a scholarship in her name to support immigrant students pursuing law degrees. In 2019 she also received the Coretta Scott King Center Award and Douglass 200 Award, and is currently featured in a video installation at the Smithsonian’s National Museum for African History and Culture for her contributions in thought-leadership for the betterment of the diaspora. As the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, Ayọ has set her movement sights on an even bigger struggle: uplifting Black lives worldwide. In 2020 she founded Diaspora Rising, a new media and advocacy hub dedicated to strengthening the bonds amongst members of the global Black family. Additionally, she's focused on other social enterprises. With nearly two decades as a human rights champion, she still feels her work has only just begun.