“Art is not neutral. It either upholds or disrupts the status quo, advancing or regressing justice…It is our right and responsibility to write ourselves into the future.”
— adrienne maree brown, Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds
About Amber
Amber King (they/them), MSW, is a non-binary, queer Southern community organizer who uses art and visual strategy to build progressive social movements. They blend skills in communications, human-centered design, somatics, and social work to facilitate community art actions, creative meet-ups, and trainings. They focus on sustaining community joy and resiliency while advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, and climate justice.
Amber is an expressive artist with a love for acrylic and watercolor painting, oil pastels, poetry, personal essay writing, and fiction writing. They also enjoy photography, video production, and large-scale art installations. Their design-thinking training comes from a background working in UX research and as an executive assistant to renowned collaboration designer Sunni Brown.
Amber serves on the United for Youth Leadership Team as an advocate for LGBTQ+ youth with the United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County. As a Supportive Schools Organizer with the Campaign for Southern Equality, Amber advocated for queer and trans students, families, and educators at the local, state, and federal levels. Amber also created and facilitated affirming events for LGBTQ+ youth of Western North Carolina as a programs intern with Youth OUTright.
Amber developed the Austin, Texas hub of the Sunrise Movement, where they served as hub coordinator and base-building team lead. They also honed their leadership skills as a relational organizing director and field organizer on multiple campaigns, where they recruited, trained, and managed staff and volunteers.