My name is DaQuan Lawrence and I am an international human rights activist from New York City. I work currently work as a middle school educator, international freelance journalist and as an African Studies PhD candidate at Howard University.

With a background in NYC foster homes and experience in urban poverty, I use public policy research and human rights advocacy to equip young people, marginalized communities, nonprofit practitioners, as well as public and private sector representatives with the tools to change social and economic conditions.

My studies at Johns Hopkins University focused on international public policy, human rights and humanitarian research and economics. My doctoral research focuses on public policy in Africa. My dissertation, "Urban Class Structure in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Case Studies from Johannesburg and Tshwane (Pretoria)", is a mixed methods study that investigates class and urban segregation in Johannesburg. Via community engagement, participatory research, and observation, I seek to develop new international class categories that can be utilized in both developed and underdeveloped nations.