Charlene A. Carruthers

Charlene A. Carruthers is the national director of the Black Youth Project 100 (BYP100), an activist member-led organization of Black 18-35 year olds dedicated to creating justice and freedom for all Black people. Charlene is a political organizer and writer with over 10 years of experience in racial justice, feminist and youth leadership development movement work.

Her passion for developing young leaders to build capacity within marginalized communities has led her to work on immigrant rights, economic justice and civil rights campaigns nationwide. She has led grassroots and digital strategy campaigns for national progressive organizations including the Center for Community Change, the Women’s Media Center, ColorOfChange.org and National People’s Action.

Charlene is deeply committed to working with young organizers seeking to create a better world. She has facilitated and developed political trainings for organizations including the NAACP, the Center for Progressive Leadership, the New Organizing Institute, MoveOn.org, Young People For and Wellstone Action.

Charlene earned a B.A. in History & International Studies from Illinois Wesleyan University and a Master of Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis. Charlene was born and raised on South Side of Chicago where she currently resides.

Carruthers' passion is mentoring young activists to become leaders who fight for the rights of voters, workers and immigrants and against unequal treatment of women. According to her Twitter profile, she's "living at the intersection of blackness + womanhood + discovery.