The fifth annual Essence GU Disruptor Summit began with a discussion on political issues surrounding the upcoming election on November 5, 2025. Lynae Vanee and Yolanda Renee King led a conversation about pressing world issues and how to remain active throughout the election to protect and amplify our rights and voices.
Yolanda King expressed her perspective on the impact of young voices in today’s society, emphasizing the positive influence of social media in connecting people worldwide and providing a platform to address important issues.
“I believe that the presence of social media has been one of the greatest things to happen to us. There are a lot of controversial things about it, but then also being able to communicate with people. Because of social media, I can connect with people from all over the world instantly and also be able to have a platform where you can talk about the issues that you’re concerned about. A lot of movements now have been operated through social media and that has played a very pivotal role and helped us to reach more people and make an impact,” Yoland told GU.
Lynae Vanee echoed Yolanda’s sentiments, sharing her journey in discovering her voice through activism and highlighting the pivotal role of social media in mobilizing movements. As she reflected on her initial years of creating “Parking Lot Pimpin’”, she stated, “Everything black people do is political. Everything we do is a form of resistance. Harnessing that is the most useful tool that we can exercise in climates like these”, Lynae told GU.
Project 2025
The discussion then shifted to the potential impact of policies in the upcoming election, particularly Project 2025, and the importance of exercising the right to vote to challenge these policies.
“Overall, if you look through the document there are so many things that they cover on and talk about and I do believe it is going to set us back. It’s going to cause a lot of obstacles and division. It’s almost a pushback. With 2020 and the rise of BLM and George Flyod, you saw people going to the streets and protesting. Project 2025 along with the acts that restrict voting rights, it’s really all an attempt to set us back and we need to find a way to challenge it,” Yolanda told GU.
Yolanda emphasized the need to encourage peers to vote in both federal and local elections, especially to counteract initiatives like Project 2025 that could diminish rights for future generations. Many of today’s youth are in jeopardy of having less rights than they were born with.
“Encourage your peers to go out and vote. Even not just in the federal elections, but also in more local elections because I think so many people and politicians have ideas worth listening to. We just have to come out and support that. I think the vote, specifically the black vote when we did it last time for the last election and I believe we can do it again and save our country and the world from this Project 2025 because it’s just going to create more division and chaos,” Yolanda told GU.
Lynae further discussed the enduring battle against systemic racism and the resistance faced by marginalized communities.
“When we say there’s pushback- Pushback happens in pockets, but it’s just an everlasting flow. When we were Emancipated from slavery, there was a pushback of Jim Crow. That pushback is almost inevitable because of the racism within this country. I want people to understand that Project 2025 isn’t just a new thing, it’s been in the works for a few years. One this particular project isn’t going away, but it is also an indicator that there is growing resistance to our resistance that exists,” Lynae told GU.
Yolanda underscored the role of social media in raising awareness about issues like Project 2025 and as a tool for understanding and addressing the challenges facing the country.
“Without social media, I don’t think we would have been able to see this Project 2025, it wouldn’t have gone as viral so imagine going through the election without knowing about this. I think that causes a lot of action to be done. With Project 2025 or any sort of pushback, even though the pushback can be very ugly, very horrible, and show the worst of our country. I think that pushback is almost feedback because it shows us what we need to work on, what we need to do, and what’s next for us and the true state of this country,” Yolanda told GU.
Climate Change
The conversation also touched upon the interconnected nature of climate change and social justice, highlighting the impact of climate issues on marginalized communities such as the current state of Florida and Georgia behind the recent hurricanes. Yolanda emphasized the need to address climate change as part of a broader effort to tackle inequality and injustice.
“All of these issues are connected. I think whether we’re talking about gender equality, LGBTQIA+, race, class, and climate change are all connected. Because of the hurricanes, there are people without homes who have to start from the beginning. The reason why we are seeing a rise in all of these hurricanes is because of climate change. If we don’t have a space and everything is destroyed in that space then how are we going to solve and work on the other issues? I hope that through that encourages people to find ways to support the climate and to see that this is an issue,” Yolanda told GU.
The conversation also touched upon the interconnected nature of climate change and social justice, highlighting the impact of climate issues on marginalized communities.
“We need people at various levels of government to be working towards this. The geographic landscape affects whether or not people will be affected by these climate changes and also because of racialized segregation where certain neighborhoods got affected by these hurricanes. When we think about marginalized communities being the most affected by climate change, that’s exactly how Hurricane Katrina happened. When I say it’s not just about voting for the president, you need to know who in your local government is making decisions about urban development,” Lynae told GU.
Reproductive Rights
Lynae then led the discussion towards Yolanda about the danger that has been implemented towards Women’s Reproductive Rights within this election period and the rollback from the policy Roe v. Wade within several states and what that means for the future. Yolanda emphasized the need to address climate change as part of a broader effort to tackle inequality and injustice.
“There’s a big impact. It impacts young girls and women. I was born in 2008, with all of the recent pushback and the laws that have been passed, I have fewer rights now than when I was born in 2008. That shows how far we’ve gone back with everything. It seems like with all these laws with reproductive rights being more restrictive, it seems like we’re restricting the building. It doesn’t seem like we’re expanding the building. If we’re always trying to expand this country, I don’t see any improvement. This country should be about expansion and this idea of being able to expand, but it seems overall we have gone backward,” Yolanda told GU.
The panelists both emphasized the importance of voting in federal and local elections to ensure the rights of future generations are secured.
“We have to vote and even that, they are trying to make voting rights harder and why do you think that is the case? It’s because the vote is powerful and we must use that. Voting is a lot of power, you must use that one power to make an impact,” Yolanda told GU.
Mental Health
Through the heavy controversy that exists within the election, the panelists vocalized the importance of mental health ways to preserve your mental health, and the ways mental health services can improve during this election season.
“This can all be draining. I had to find ways to reconnect and be able to connect again. Finding some type of escapism, finding something funny, or just doing stuff that you enjoy. I think that it is so important to create your kind of environment. We can decide the people that we want to be around, the activities that we want to do, and the things that make us happy. Make sure you create an environment that is ideal for you. Put yourself in issues or finally start that passion project and also service. Some studies have shown engaging in service it’s proven that your mental health increases just by helping someone. If there’s something that has been bothering you, find someone to talk about the things with. I think it is so important to have a support system,” Yolanda told GU.
Overall, the discussion at the Essence GU Disruptor Summit underscored the importance of civic engagement, the power of social media in raising awareness, and the need to address interconnected issues such as social justice and climate change.
About Amber: Amber Little is a writer, fashionista, and digital content creator. She has used her Journalism degree from Georgia State University and is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Interior Design at SCAD to educate others through life and beauty.