Virginia Cumberbatch
Co-founder of Rosa Rebellion + Racial Justice Educator
Virginia is a co-founder of Rosa Rebellion and drives the curation of projects and development of collaborations for the Rosa Rebellion platform. As a storyteller, racial justice educator and organizer, Virginia’s work sits at the intersection of community advocacy and creative activism. With a heart to elevate the voices of women of color whose stories are often siloed or ignored, she co-birthed Rosa Rebellion to create space for the brilliance and thought leadership of women of color in media, policy and community organizing. Beyond Rosa Rebellion, Virginia supports the development of a culture and ethos of equity for organizations through racial justice workshops and education.
She is currently serving as a Global Ambassador Advisor for Lululemon and in 2017 was appointed to the Mayor of Austin's Task Force on Institutional Racism and Systemic Bias. From 2016 - 2020, Virginia served as Director of Community Engagement and Social Equity for The University of Texas at Austin's Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, helping drive the university's vision to become less of an ivory tower, and more of a community anchor addressing issues of access and equity. Given her commitment to disrupt systemic racism and build resources for inclusive practices, she's spoken around the world, including: SXSW, SXSWEDU, TEDX, Q Commons, J.P. Morgan Chase's PowerHer, and the University of Western Australia's Social Impact Conference.
She is the recipient of the 2016 Anti-Defamation League of Austin Social Justice Award, the 2018 Austin 40 Under 40 Award for Civics, Government and Public Affairs, and the Girl Scouts Women of Distinction.
She holds a B.A. in history from Williams College and a M.A. in public affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin.
Meagan Harding
Co-founder of Rosa Rebellion + Civil Rights Attorney
Meagan is the co-founder of Rosa Rebellion and develops Rosa Rebellion cohorts and curates the community of creative activists and agitators. She is a creative and justice advocate with a passion for racial and gender equity. As a civil rights attorney, Meagan encounters the consequences of systemic inequity frequently and engages in disruptive work to eradicate it.
Meagan’s has demonstrated her commitment to dismantle systemic oppression and champion equity by co-developing a program designed to encourage and cultivate authentic conversations around difficult topics such as race, politics and community. In this role, she has helped lead a team and develop dynamic curriculum and programming to spur transformative, in depth conversations while also growing relationships.
As a community servant, Meagan has served in multiple roles including as the Vice Chair of the City of Austin Ethics Review Commission a member of the Criminal and Civil Justice working group for the Mayor’s Task Force on institutional Racism. She served on the planning committee for the Austin Trailblazer Awards honoring stellar black women in the Austin community. Meagan is a graduate of the 2015 class of Leadership Austin, the recipient of the 2016 Rising Star award for the Black Austin Democrats and the 2018 Outstanding New Director of the Year for the Texas Young Lawyers Association.
She holds a B.S. in Communications and a law degree from The University of Texas at Austin
Don't miss Meagan & Virginia's masterclass!
Due to length of discussion, this session will start 10 minutes ahead of the other "Soul" sessions. Please be sure to tune in at 1:20 pm.
Join us for a conversation on the need for community wellness to include racial justice, addressing the oftentimes invisible labor of people of color, who bear the taxing burden of dismantling the very systems that have worked to oppress them. In the aftermath of 2020, which illuminated a racial reckoning amidst the backdrop of police brutality, the stories of families being separated at the border, missing indigenous women, and the trauma of political disenfranchisement of communities of color, all exacerbated by the trauma and triggers of seeing Black and Brown lives brutalized, you’ll explore how we can all remain more aware and active, while also protecting our peace and mental health.
Lead by Virginia Cumberbatch and Meagan Harding, the co-founders of Rosa Rebellion, “a platform for creative activism by and for women of color,” the session will offer space for collective exploration of what it looks like to show up as a co-agitator in your sphere of influence. The Rosa Rebellion team invites you to join the call for Austin to invest in the work of racial justice through intentional labor, and elevate the voices of women of color.
Read Virginia and Meagan’s appeal to Austin and the country that we cannot ignore if we are to live up to our full potential — as people and as a city, in the latest issue of Tribeza.
Check out the February issue featuring Rosa Rebellion!
Rosa Rebellion is a platform for creative activism by and for women of color to disrupt unjust systems and design equitable futures. Founded in 2018, as a think tank and do tank, Rosa Rebellion supports creative projects that serve to cultivate, celebrate, and liberate. We are a platform that supports and amplifies creative projects, programs and productions by women of color that serve to tell stories of resistance, resilience and radical change.
