MIAMI, Fla. – World OutGames Miami 2017, a 10-day multi-sport, human rights and cultural event to be held May 26 through June 4, has announced Amini Fonua, Surat-Shaan Knan and Debbie Wasserman Schultz as plenary speakers for its Global Conference on Human Rights. The three-day conference (May 26-29) will feature as many as 25 notable activists, thought leaders and community figures addressing more than 35 topics that promote inclusivity in sports, health & wellness and global social justice.
“We are thrilled to announce the addition of Amini Fonua, Surat-Shaan Knan and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz to our roster of impressive plenary speakers as part of the World OutGames Miami Global Conference on Human Rights,” said Ivan Cano, CEO of World OutGames Miami. “This conference allows individuals to share their stories of strength and hope with an international audience and, along with our other pillars of sports and culture, will serve as a powerful tool to promote unity and inclusiveness globally.”
Amini Fonua is an openly gay Tongan competitive swimmer and advocate for LGBTQI rights. Born in Auckland, New Zealand to a Tongan father and a British-born mother, he holds dual citizenship in both Tonga and New Zealand. Amini recently competed in the Rio Olympics for the country of Tonga and was also the team’s flag-bearer at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.
Surat-Shaan Knan works for the Liberal Jewish movement in the United Kingdom and is a campaigner for faith related LGBTQI+ issues. Shaan is the founder and manager of the landmark Heritage Lottery Fund supported projects Rainbow Jews, Twilight People and Rainbow Pilgrims. Rainbow Pilgrims is a landmark project that discovers and celebrates the hidden history of Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQI) migrants in the UK past and present.
For more than 20 years, Debbie Wasserman Schultz has dedicated her public life to working on behalf of the people of South Florida. In 2005, she was sworn in as a member of the United States House of Representatives. Rep. Wasserman Schultz represents Florida’s 23rd Congressional district, which encompasses parts of Broward and Miami-Dade counties. For the 115th Congress, Wasserman Schultz will serve on the House Committee on Appropriations and serve as ranking member of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Subcommittee. She will also serve on the Appropriations’ Energy and Water Subcommittee, among others.
Rep. Wasserman Schultz is a person respected by her colleagues for her tenacity and her hard work on many important issues. In March 2009, after announcing her own battle with breast cancer, she introduced the Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act, or EARLY Act (H.R. 1740), a piece of legislation that directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop and implement a national education campaign about the threat breast cancer poses to all young women, and the particular heightened risks of certain ethnic, cultural and racial groups. This bill became law as part of the Affordable Health Care Act in March 2010. In 2014, she worked to pass a bipartisan reauthorization of the EARLY Act (H.R. 5185) for five additional years, which was signed into law by President Obama in December 2014.
For a full list of participating speakers and workshops, visit www.outgames.org/human_rights/conference.
World OutGames Miami is made possible through the support of Bacardi, the City of Miami Beach, Coca-Cola, Florida Sports Foundation, Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, Happy Copenhagen, the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights, Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority, Miami Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners and Miami Sports.
For more information about World OutGames Miami including registration for participants, visit www.outgames.org.
