Debbie Wooten entered a world of poverty, racism, abuse and family sucide when she was born in South Chicago with spina bifida and soon contracted polio. After years of struggle and barriers that for most of us would be too daunting, Debbie succeeded in becoming a highly requested speaker and comedian.

Kurt M. Peters (Blackfeet/Powhatan) earned his doctorate at the University of California, Berkeley, and taught at the California State University Sacramento, and UC Berkeley. His research focuses primarily on the twentieth century Native American experience and Native American wage labor. He is Associate Professor of Native American and Comparative Ethnic Studies in the Ethnic Studies Department at Oregon State University. His two most recent publications are edited volumes: "The American Indian Urban Experience" and a chapter in "Indian Chicago", both in 2001. He is the director of NACI and a member of the executive committee of the rural communities initiative.

Dr. Juan Andrade, Jr. is President of the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute and was a television political commentator for six years in Chicago. He has worked and participated in the democratization of Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, Paraguay, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and Haiti. Dr. Andrade has been recognized three times as one of the 100 most influential Hispanics in America.