Empowering Our Communities:

Navigating Federal Changes, Upholding Your Rights,
Encouraging Food Justice, and Protecting Your Mental Health

A Virtual Event
June 16, 2025 – 3pm (PT) / 6pm (ET)

Many of us are currently witnessing and/or experiencing the significant challenges of a new federal administration. Some have dedicated countless years to advocating for a more compassionate, equitable, and sustainable world, and that progress is being reversed quicker than it was formed.

Youth face a particular challenge in this moment due to their futures being threatened by unjust systems created by individuals who are supposed to help safeguard their future.

In an act of education and resistance, Food Empowerment Project (F.E.P.) invites you to a free seminar event on June 16th. This event will equip youth and community members with the knowledge and tools to strengthen and protect minds and communities amidst unjust and oppressive administrative changes. You will gain invaluable insight from experts in federal policy and immigration law, grassroots organizing, food justice, and mental health – all critical areas requiring our collective support and awareness.

Youth attendees (age 11 to 24) will receive a “Know Your Rights” activist pack, including a copy of the U.S. Constitution, to encourage an understanding of your rights, a “Liberate All Beings” sticker from Vegan Power Co., a poster from Justseeds’s “People’s Movements in the U.S.” series, and an F.E.P. “Eat Your Ethics” sticker!

(If you’re unable to attend and would still like to support, please consider donating.)

Everyone is encouraged to attend, regardless of your age!

The first 50 youth to attend will receive a ‘Know Your Rights’ giveaway pack! You do not want to miss this!

EMCEE

Kennedy Little

Kennedy Little (she, her, hers) is F.E.P.’s youth advocacy team member. She is from Lexington, Kentucky, and is an undergraduate student at Morehead State University, where she is pursuing pre-law and agribusiness with a minor in public administration. After going vegan in 2019, Kennedy began to use her background in agricultural organizations to help change the unethical norms many agricultural workers face. She has worked with youth-centered organizations to push inclusive, culturally diverse, and climate-friendly foods into public school cafeterias and has spoken with Congress members and the USDA on this successful initiative. She is also the founder and president of an environmental organization at her university that focuses on environmental and animal justice through an intersectional lens.

SPEAKERS

Amber Qureshi

Amber Qureshi is the founder of the Law Office of Amber Qureshi, a law firm that represents individuals and organizations seeking to litigate requests for information from federal government agencies under the Freedom of Information Act. Amber previously served as a staff attorney at the National Immigration Project, where she worked on litigation challenging anti-immigrant policies and supported grassroots partners on local advocacy campaigns. She regularly provides trainings and resources to community members and organizations on immigration enforcement issues. She is a graduate of Yale Law School, Johns Hopkins University School of Education, and University of Maryland College Park.

lauren ornelas

lauren Ornelas (she, her, hers) is F.E.P.’s founder and general programs team member. lauren has been active in the animal rights movement for more than 37 years. She is the former executive director of Viva!USA, a national nonprofit vegan advocacy organization that Viva!UK asked her to start in 1999. While lauren was the director of Viva!USA, she investigated factory farms and ran consumer campaigns. In cooperation with activists across the country, she persuaded Trader Joe’s to stop selling all duck meat and achieved corporate changes within Whole Foods Market, Pier 1 Imports, and others, and she helped halt the construction of an industrial dairy operation in California. lauren was also the spark that got the founder of Whole Foods Market to become a vegan. In addition, she served as campaign director with the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition for six years. Watch lauren’s TEDx talk, The Power of Our Food Choices.

Bina Ahmed

Bina Ahmad (she/her) is a social justice attorney working in criminal defense, civil rights, international human rights and animal rights. She is an Associate Attorney with Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai, LLP, and General Counsel and co-chair of Muslims for Just Futures’ (MJF) legal network. She serves as American Muslim Bar Association’s (AMBA) Advocacy Chair, advisor to Parceo, and on Food Empowerment Project’s Advisory Board. She has worked with several Palestine advocacy organizations, including the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), Al Haq, and Badil, and animal rights organizations.

Niaomi MoShier

Niaomi MoShier is a passionate public health advocate and researcher committed to advancing health equity, particularly for Black women and other marginalized communities. She holds a BA in Political Science from Howard University and an MPH from George Washington University, she is set to begin her Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) at Morgan State University in Fall 2025. At her previous Community and Population Health fellowship, Niaomi focused on sociocultural research and initiatives centered on maternal mortality and morbidity, working to address the systemic disparities faced by Black birthing people. Her work examines the intersection of race, gender, and health, and she brings deep expertise in community engagement, language equity, and qualitative research. She is also a certified Mental Health First Aid Trainer, equipping communities with tools to support emotional well-being and identify a mental health crisis. As the NYC Chapter Director of The She Rose Foundation USA, and a member of APHA and the National Council of Negro Women, Niaomi continues to elevate the voices of underserved populations and advocate for policy reforms that create lasting change.