Dr. Matthew C. Whitaker is the Founder and CEO of the Diamond Strategies, LLC (DSC). He is also an award-winning educator, author, community engagement specialist, motivational speaker, and founder the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy, winner of the 2014 Arizona Diversity Leadership Alliance (DLA) Inclusive Workplace Award, at Arizona State University, where was a professor of history for 15 years. Most recently he was given DLA’s 2016 Diversity and Inclusion Leader Award. He is also a co-founder of the Healing Racism Public Dialogue Series, winner of the 2008 National League of Cities Promoting Inclusive Award, and the recipient of ASU’s 2015 Pioneer Award for working to improve African-American life, community and culture, and the City of Phoenix 2006 Martin Luther King, Jr. Living the Dream Award. His expertise lies in U.S. history, African American history and life, race relations, social movements, cultural competency, equity and inclusion, teaching excellence, and community partnerships. He has edited three books, including Hurricane Katrina: America’s Unnatural Disaster, and is the author of Race Work: The Rise of Civil Rights in the Urban West. He is currently completing a memoir entitled The Undisputed Truth: A Revolutionary Journey to Black Manhood. Dr. Whitaker has consulted, spoken, and lectured throughout the world, including Australia, Canada, China, Czech Republic, England, Ghana, and Ireland. He has been featured on CNN, NPR, PBS, WVON, KEMET, and is the co-founder of the newly formed Just Communities Arizona. He can be followed on Twitter at @Dr_Whitaker and DSC can be followed on Twitter at @dstategiesllc.
He is THE black historian of our state of Arizona and his my personal friend, as well as my boss at Diamond Strategies, LLC. Where he is the leader in diversity, equity, inclusion!
Matthew is an award-winning educator, author, community engagement specialist, motivational speaker, and founder the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy, winner of the 2014 Arizona Diversity Leadership Alliance (DLA) Inclusive Workplace Award, at A