HUNTSVILLE – Ben O’Keefe, social change activist and political commentator, will be the keynote speaker for the University of Alabama in Huntsville’s Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration.
The annual reflection and celebration of the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. is hosted by the UAH Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. The event is Jan. 12 from 3:30 – 5:30 p.m. in the UAH Student Services Building, Room 112.
Admission is free to UAH students, staff and faculty. The event is open to the public for a minimum $12 donation for the Dave McGlathery Trailblazer Scholarship Fund. The scholarship helps empower first-generation UAH students to build a more just society and establish their own legacy.
O’Keefe is a public speaker and Forbes 30 Under 30 award-winning CEO of Chaotic Good, a social impact company promoting diversity, anti-racism, social justice and conversations on LGBTQ+ equality and masculinity.
He is head of Diversity & Impact Production at Creator+, a next-generation content studio and distribution platform for digital-first storytellers and creators. His work there involves the intersection of entertainment and politics. O’Keefe has worked with top organizations, brands, politicians, celebrities and industry showrunners to build campaigns, provide content and execute strategies to make a lasting impact on diversity and social change.
O’Keefe organized a viral campaign to combat discrimination of plus-size consumers within clothing companies such as Abercrombie & Fitch, helping to contribute to the body positivity movement.
His work also includes the #TakeDownTheFlag campaign to remove the Confederate flag from the South Carolina Statehouse and from companies such as Amazon and Wal-Mart, as well as Alicia Keys’ Vote Love campaign, as well as the digital movement to save death row inmate Richard Glossip from execution.
O’Keefe served as Senior Creative Lead and Advisor for Senator Elizabeth Warren’s 2020
presidential campaign and as the Impact Producer for the film ALL IN: The Fight for
Democracy from Amazon Studios, featuring Stacey Abrams and her movement against
voter suppression.
O’Keefe is an alumnus of MoveOn.org and MTV News where he served as head writer
of “DECODED,” a series on race and pop culture. He serves on the board of directors for the Chicago Media Project, a multifaceted organization that provides support and funding to documentary films and filmmakers.
For more information on the 2023 MLK Commemoration, contact [email protected], or
visit Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Program to register.
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