LeRon Barton | SpeakerHub

Personal Details

Bio

Imagine a time in life where you wake up and realize that now is the time to change your life and to help change the world. To shed all of your fears, doubts, and thoughts that held you back. To become a person of change. To tell your story, uplift others to tell their truth, and to be 100 % honest.. The time is now.

My name is LeRon L. Barton and I am a writer and speaker committed to fighting for social justice and helping you become your most authentic version of yourself. I have written over a hundred essay's and articles about racism, mass incarceration, politics, gender, business, and dating. My pieces have appeared in the following publications:

• Black Enterprise – A Black Man’s View: 5 Ways To Be A Better Male Ally In The Workplace

• Salon – My Reality: 10 Truths About Being Black In America

• Media Diversity – Why I Don’t Code Switch

• The Good Men Project – Men and The Need To Be Vulnerable

• Raconteur - Is Silicon Valley Using Culture Fit To Disguise Discrimination

• Elephant Journal - 7 Life Lessons From Great People

• Ravishly – Using Uber While Black

In 2018, I gave my first TEDx speech in Florence, Alabama for TEDxWilsonPark! My talk, “How I Overcame The Fear of My Stutter” described growing up with a stutter, attending school, going to job interviews, and dating with the stammer, and how I finally defeated my fear of stuttering. I have received dozens of messages from people telling me that the TEDx has inspired them to not live in fear and to pursue their dreams. To this date, “How I Overcame The Fear of My Stutter’ has been viewed over 140,000 times! Since then I have given talks at Speakers Who Dare, General Assembly, RSM, Remind, and Defy Ventures.

I give talks about the following subjects:

• Racial/Social Justice

• Overcoming Adversity

• Stuttering and Speech Disorders

• Regaining Confidence

• Redefining Masculinity

• Diversity in Technology

As someone who is dedicated to telling accurate stories and giving engaging speeches that motivate, I am eager to connect with you! To contact me, email me at [email protected]

www.leronbarton.com

Current position (2)

Writer, speaker, story teller

Writer/Speaker

Mainline Publishing

Achievements (1)

TEDX Speaker

In 2018, I gave a speech at the inaugural TEDxWilsonPark event.
My talk, "How I Overcame My Fear of Stuttering" about growing up with a stutter and defeating the challenges that come with it, has over 28,000 views on YouTube.

Degrees (1)

Computer Applications and Networking

Coleman College

1999 to 2000

Presentations

Presentations (8)

How I Overcame My Fear of Stuttering

In this exciting talk, I will explore:

My history of stuttering.

How I let my stutter hold me back from opportunities in life.

The moment I realized that I had to face my fears.

How I overcame the fear of stuttering.

How you can start to work towards your dreams.

Understanding Racism 101

I gave a talk at Great Assembly about racism/white supremacy. The conversation consisted of:

Understanding systemic racism
The history of white supremacy in America
Interpersonal racism in relationships
Examining your own prejudices
Anti-racism and allyship

#DoSomething: The Understanding of Race, History, and Why You Need To Be An Ally

This talk will step viewers through the following:

The origins of racism in the United States.

How racism affects African-American's today.

Unconscious Bias and why we all have them.

The murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery.

The importance of Allyship and what you can do to fight racism.

Unmasking The Problem: Race, Bias, and Microaggressions

I give a talk that discusses
what Bias is,
racism,
how micoraggressions are common,
what it is like to be the only Black and Brown person in the office, impact vs, intent,
what you would need to do to practice allyship.

Why Men of Color Need To Embrace Mental Health

Black and Latino face challenges everyday due to their race and maleness. Society sometimes sees us as criminals, sexual deviants, and threats. We are impacted by the criminal justice system, unhoused, and unemployed at very rates. In our communities, we are often told to be tough, boys don’t cry, and be a man. Because of this, when we have depression, feel uncertainty, and deal with challenges, we are not encouraged to express them. Unfortunately, this can lead to isolation, loneliness, alcohol and drug abuse, and even violent outbursts. In this conversation, I will discuss why I feel we need to break away from the long held beliefs of not seeing a therapist, being vulnerable, seeking healthy outlets for our feelings, my story of finding a therapist, and why Black and Brown men should embrace mental health.

The Power of Telling Your Story

Today, even in a multi-cultural society with different races, sexual orientations, and genders, the general narrative is still dominated by white, straight people. Because of this, we are not able to see and hear different experiences. This is due to access, discrimination, and people feeling as if their story is not valid. In this talk, I will discuss why it important for everyone to tell their story, why it is important, how it illuminates the world, and by giving a chance for everyone to speak, it can inspire others to do the same.

Being Black in Tech

The technology is one of the most innovative fields today. Life changing software, equipment that powers our everyday existence, and apps we cannot do without have been produced by tech. However, as exciting as technology hubs such as Silicon Valley are, they still have a problem with race and diversity. Black and Latino people make up 4% to 5% of the work force at major tech firms, and that points to a very important issue. As a Black man who has been in tech for over 20 years, I will talk about my experiences, challenges, suggestions for people who want to enter the field, and what I would like to see changed in technology.

The Psychological Impact of Racism/White Supremacy

In this discussion, we talk about how the everyday effects of racism can change a person’s life. We will define the terms “Microaggressions,” “Code-switching”, “Imposters Syndrome”, see how PTSD exists in Black and Brown communities, and how we can battle with these challenges.

Past talks (4)

Speaker, Panelist

Juneteenth: Understanding Whitness and Becoming An Ally

Online

June 19, 2020

Speaker

Overcoming fear and obstacles to greatness

SFMTA, San Francisco, Ca

Speaker

Speakers Who Dare

Online, New York, New York

March 24, 2020