2022 Veterans Justice Award

Richard Brookshire  | Co-founder | Black Veterans Project

Richard Brookshire is the Co-Founder of the Black Veterans Project (BVP) an organization advancing storytelling, research and public education to address long-standing racial inequities across the military and veterans landscape. More recently, Richard’s advocacy helped to compel a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study to formally assess racial disparities in benefit allocation by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

As a storyteller, Richard leverages a background in political communications and marketing, digital advocacy and documentary filmmaking to deliver strategic and dynamic social-impact campaigns.

He's previously served as Director of Communications for Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America and was the first person of color to help lead political communications at the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's preeminent LGBTQ+ civil rights organization. Richard is an alumni of Columbia University SIPA, Fordham University and Morehouse College and is a former infantry Combat Medic and U.S. Army veteran of the War in Afghanistan.

His work has been highlighted by the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, BBC, CNN, theRoot and others.

Richard currently leads communications for the Black Veterans Empowerment Council, a non-partisan coalition of 20+ national, state and local veterans organizations seeking to shift long-standing racial and economic inequities suffered by Black veterans throughout the United States.