This week Laura talks with award-winning author, lawyer, and strategist Deepa Iyer. Deepa and the organization she works with, Building Movement Project, create building blocks for activist organizations to translate their desires to create change into concrete practices they can implement. These two activists connect on their belief that how we do the work is just as important as what the work is, and that we can’t delegate social change work to people in the nonprofit sector or to activists. We all have important roles to play, no matter what our jobs and identities are. They talk about Deepa’s upcoming book and how to maintain hope, even amidst all that can feel daunting and overwhelming.
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About Deepa
Deepa Iyer is a South Asian American writer, lawyer, strategist, and facilitator whose areas of expertise include the post 9/11 America experiences of South Asian, Muslim, Arab and Sikh immigrants, immigration and civil rights policies, and racial equity and solidarity practices. She is currently the Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives at Building Movement Project where she builds projects, resources, and narratives that support nonprofits and individuals engaged in transformative movements for progressive social change. Her work includes creating the social change ecosystem map, and curating Solidarity Is, an initiative that trains activists and organizations by providing tools, narratives and practices to create transformative change.
Previously, Deepa served as executive director of South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) for a decade. Her first book, We Too Sing America: South Asian, Arab, Muslim and Sikh Immigrants Shape Our Multiracial Future (The New Press 2015), received a 2016 American Book Award. She has a new book coming out this year on how people can deepen and sharpen their social change efforts in our challenging times.
Show Notes & Links
@dviyer Twitter
@deepaviyer Instagram