A New Orleans-based collective centering the voices of the unheard and most impacted communities — building the tools, stories, and civic power to make our systems answer to the people they're supposed to serve.
A New Orleans-based collective centering the voices of the unheard and most impacted communities — building the tools, stories, and civic power to make our systems answer to the people they're supposed to serve.
Our mission
Amplify Justice / Liberation Collective empowers directly-impacted community members to create the stories and media that educate and inspire others toward civic engagement, empowerment, and real, sustainable change. We believe impacted people already hold the power to lead — as decision-makers who operate from positions of strength, not just survival. Through education, advocacy, and voting, we amplify their voices and catalyze transformation across New Orleans, Louisiana, and the wider Southern Delta region.
We're focused on thriving, not just surviving — joy, family, culture, and celebration included.
Amplify Justice is a small organization by design: close enough to our community to take its suggestions seriously, and nimble enough to build the tools we believe will actually move us toward the change we want to see.
How we work
We fight for equitable, culturally-rooted public education and hold systems accountable when they fail Black and low-income families.
Federal Consent Decree support for the Southern Poverty Law Center (P.B. v. Brumley), organizing parent testimony for special education compliance, and public advocacy against school privatization featured in The Progressive and The Atlantic.
We build the next generation of engaged voters and community decision-makers, starting with young people most locked out of the political process.
"No More Waiting: Our Voice, Our Future" — civics workshops, open mics, and voter engagement for ages 16–24, run in partnership with Women With A Vision and New Orleans Job Corps.
We expose and challenge the systems — from utility billing to disaster recovery policy — that extract from communities already carrying the most.
Public accountability campaigns on Sewerage & Water Board rate practices, and 20+ years of advocacy connecting disaster capitalism, post-Katrina rebuilding, and economic inequity — including testimony before the United Nations on poverty.
We put storytelling and lived experience at the center of policy — training community members to lead, not just be heard.
Parent coalition organizing, a 10-part video series of parents guiding families through the charter school system, and Ashana Bigard's 20 years as a multimedia storyteller and advocate.
Our work
Five workshop events reaching more than 135 students, built to make voting, advocacy, and civic power feel real and reachable for young people.
An independent, public civic engagement gathering for young people, made possible with support from Women With A Vision and Ubuntu Village.
Ubuntu Village — Director Ernest Johnson · Supported by Black Men Rising — Director Antonio Travis
Working with SPLC to get parents the information and support they need to navigate schools, delivered through our ALAB platform.
alabcommunity.com →A new platform to help families understand and rate their schools. The demo is live now — comments and community feedback are welcome.
schoolviewdemo.com →From the field
Photos from our workshops and gatherings, plus short clips of young people talking about why voting matters to them.
Mark your calendar
Join us at our next workshop, gathering, or community info session.
An evening of food, wine & tea for New Orleans writers & readers — hosted with Propeller. Free and open to the public; you don't have to be a published author to come.
Friday, October 16 · 5:30–7:30 PM · Propeller, New Orleans
RSVP: Ashana Bigard — ambigard@gmail.com · (504) 344-6733
A gift, for coming to our page
What every person should know about true American history — the myths we were taught, and the facts behind them. This free edition is built for teachers, with reflection pages for classroom use. Free to download as our thanks for visiting.
Leadership
Director, Amplify Justice Liberation Collective
Ashana Bigard is a passionate social justice organizer, activist, writer, urban analyst, and program expert dedicated to advocating for students and families in Louisiana and New Orleans' public education system. As Director of Amplify Justice Liberation Collective, she promotes educational equity while empowering marginalized communities and amplifying student voices in the fight for justice.
A lifelong member of the Dignity in Schools Campaign since its inception — and now proud to have Amplify Justice Liberation Collective as a member organization — Ashana has remained steadfast in the campaign's mission to transform school discipline and restore dignity to all students.
Ashana is the author of Beyond Resilience: Katrina 20 and What the Grandmothers Kept, and is currently an Education Fellow at Progressive Magazine. A lifelong New Orleans resident and devoted mother of three, she continues to work tirelessly toward a more equitable society for children and families.
