Brandon Wolf

  • National Press Secretary and Senior Director of Political Communications, HRC (Human Rights Campaign)
  • Survivor of Pulse Night Club Mass Shooting
  • Gun Safety and LGBTQ Civil Rights Activist
  • Co-Founder of The Dru Project

LGBTQ Civil Rights advocate and nationally-recognized gun safety activist Brandon Wolf is a dynamic public speaker with a powerful personal story of community, love, and resilience in the face of adversity

On June 12th, 2016, life changed for Brandon. He crouched in a bathroom while a gunman opened fire at Orlando’s Pulse Nightclub, killing his best friends, Drew Leinonen & Juan Guerrero, and 47 others. Rather than be swallowed by the anger and fear of tragedy, Brandon set out to honor the victims’ legacies with action. In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Brandon co-founded The Dru Project, a nonprofit organization that works to empower youth and provide future leaders in the LGBTQ community funding for higher education. To date, the organization has given over $100,000 in college scholarships to rising leaders. He also became an outspoken activist in the gun violence prevention movement, partnering with March For Our Lives, Everytown, Giffords, and others to demand legislative solutions to the epidemic. In 2019, he became the first survivor of the tragedy at Pulse Nightclub to testify before Congress.

A powerful public speaker, Brandon serves as the Press Secretary for Equality Florida, the state's LGBTQ civil rights organization. Wolf is a frequent guest on MSNBC (The Reid Out & American Voices), CNN, and in print publications (CNN.com, USA Today, Newsweek, Teen Vogue, Washington Post, The Advocate, Out Magazine) weaving his story into calls to action. He has been recognized by HuffPost as one of “30 modern-day LGBTQ pioneers” and Business Equality Magazine as one of 40 LGBTQ Leaders Under 40. Brandon's debut book, A Place For Us, is an unforgettable memoir of getting through the darkest times with healing, hope, and resistance. “With our backs against the wall,” he writes, “we find a way out together.”

 

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Rave Reviews About Brandon Wolf
Brandon's presenting abilities are remarkable. He not only was spot on relevant in content and personalized messaging to our group but was also a light and inspiration in his determination to change our world to make us a better place. We look forward to working with this entire group in future!

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Talks & Conversations with Brandon Wolf
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A Place For Us: Getting Through the Darkest Times with Hope, Healing, and Resistance

LGBTQ+ activist and gun safety advocate Brandon Wolf shares his powerful story of self-discovery, community, love, and resilience in the face of adversity. A survivor of the Pulse Night Club mas shooting, Brandon faced an unimaginable tragedy and shares his transformative journey from young outsider ...

LGBTQ+ activist and gun safety advocate Brandon Wolf shares his powerful story of self-discovery, community, love, and resilience in the face of adversity. A survivor of the Pulse Night Club mas shooting, Brandon faced an unimaginable tragedy and shares his transformative journey from young outsider to galvanizing activist. “With our backs against the wall,” he says, “we find a way out together.”

More Than Surviving

In this talk, Brandon takes the audience on a journey from growing up as a queer, Black man in America to finding chosen family and belonging thousands of miles from home to narrowly escaping the tragic shooting at Pulse Nightclub. The group will explore how to do more than simply survive adversity ...

In this talk, Brandon takes the audience on a journey from growing up as a queer, Black man in America to finding chosen family and belonging thousands of miles from home to narrowly escaping the tragic shooting at Pulse Nightclub. The group will explore how to do more than simply survive adversity by turning pain into purpose and acknowledging that with our backs against the wall, we only find the way out together. 

Unlock the Potential of Authenticity

This conversation, designed for businesses, organizations, and equity initiatives, explores the untapped individual and team potential when we create spaces that foster authenticity. When we are able to bring our whole selves to our work without fear of shame or discrimination, the possibilities are ...

This conversation, designed for businesses, organizations, and equity initiatives, explores the untapped individual and team potential when we create spaces that foster authenticity. When we are able to bring our whole selves to our work without fear of shame or discrimination, the possibilities are endless.

Advocating From The Intersections

As the country comes to terms with the task of creating an inclusive democracy, Brandon’s insight into the power of advocating authentically and at the intersections of identities is invaluable. This presentation explores the need for intersectionality in movement building; the limitless power of sh ...

As the country comes to terms with the task of creating an inclusive democracy, Brandon’s insight into the power of advocating authentically and at the intersections of identities is invaluable. This presentation explores the need for intersectionality in movement building; the limitless power of sharing our authentic stories and the links between the multiple crises facing our nation. There has never been a more urgent time to bring new voices to the table.

Backlash 2023

After decades of progress on LGBTQ equality, the nation is reeling from intense backlash against the community. This talk breaks down current legislative and social efforts to unwind progress on LGBTQ issues, identifies the key players, and explores what it will take to move the country forward once ...

After decades of progress on LGBTQ equality, the nation is reeling from intense backlash against the community. This talk breaks down current legislative and social efforts to unwind progress on LGBTQ issues, identifies the key players, and explores what it will take to move the country forward once more.

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Biography

Brandon Wolf is a nationally recognized LGBTQ civil rights advocate, leader in the movement to end gun violence in America, and survivor of the 2016 shooting at Pulse Nightclub. After narrowly escaping that night, during what was the deadliest mass shooting in US history at the time, Brandon channeled his life into fighting for a safer world for future generations and honoring victims of injustice with action.

He is a frequent face on MSNBC and CNN, and an opinion contributor in Oprah Daily, CNN digital, Newsweek, USA Today, and others. Brandon has graced the cover of Dazed Magazine and LGBTQ publications nationwide, having been named one of the Logo TV’s 30 LGBTQ Changemakers, Huffington Post’s 30 LGBTQ Influencers under 30 and Business Equality Magazine’s 40 LGBTQ Leaders Under 40.

Brandon’s work has made him a respected thought leader on the political intersections of LGBTQ civil rights, racial justice, and gun violence. He was a national surrogate for Senator Elizabeth Warren’s Presidential Campaign and an advisory committee member for President Biden’s General Election bid. In 2019, he became the first survivor of the Pulse tragedy to testify before Congress and was returned in 2022 to testify on the rise of anti-LGBTQ hate violence before the House Oversight Committee. Brandon is a co-founder and current Vice President of The Dru Project, a nonprofit organization that empowers safe spaces in schools for LGBTQ youth, and currently serves as the Press Secretary for Equality Florida, the state’s LGBTQ civil rights organization.