Valarie Kaur; photo by Jeff Neira
VALARIE KAUR is a civil rights leader, documentary filmmaker, lawyer, educator, and faith leader. The daughter of farmers in California’s heartland, Valarie was brought up in the Sikh faith, and earned degrees at Stanford University, Harvard Divinity School, and Yale Law School. Over the last two decades, Valarie’s work has led to policy change in areas such as hate crimes, racial profiling, and immigration detention, to solitary confinement, Internet freedom, and more. She founded the Groundswell Movement (a multifaith online community working together through social action), Faithful Internet (a resource protecting faith-inspired service), and the Yale Visual Law Project (to train up advocates at the intersection of spirituality, storytelling, and justice).
On Dec. 30, 2016, Valarie gave a short address during a “Watch Night Service” at the Metropolitan AME Church in Washington. She joined several leaders, including the Rev. James Forbes of Riverside Church in New York City, Imam Talib Al Rashid of Harlem, and the Rev. William Barber, a pastor in North Carolina. During her address, she asked a question that helped to reframe the political moment, and became a mantra for people fighting for change during a dark time. Her question was, “Is this the darkness of the tomb – or the darkness of the womb?” This six-minute video of her speech has been viewed 40 million times around the world.
Valarie now heads up The Revolutionary Love Project, which is both a movement and a learning hub. It seeks to inspire and equip people with practical tools to build beloved community in the places they live. 
Her book See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love (One World Publishing, New York, 2020) was a #1 LA Times Bestseller.
In the fall of 2022, President Biden honored Valarie at the White House in the first-ever Uniters Ceremony, naming her as one of sixteen leaders whose work is healing America.
Due to illness, Valarie was unable to join us for a video interview, but we were able to connect with her in other ways. We asked about her upcoming plans, and discovered that she intends to launch a national listening tour. It will involve approximately 100 communities across America that have been self-organizing around revolutionary love. As she explained, “We plan to use these insights to design what this movement needs to keep building. I have spent the last 20 years of my life organizing around hate. I have made a promise to spend the rest of my life organizing around love.”
We are delighted to share Valarie’s TED Talk, so you can experience more of her story and her vision:
(22 minutes)
For more information about Valarie Kaur and The Revolutionary Love Project, visit her website.
You can also follow her on Facebook and Instagram
