Johnny Perez

Reintroduce + reset — Comment one word you’re claiming for 2026.

Super excited to be revamping this page. Stay tuned.

Question of the Day:

What’s a hard truth you had to learn the hard way—but now you’re grateful for?

If you need a reason not to trust everything you see online, here’s one of many:

📸 The image on the left is a real photo of my living room—taken on my phone just last night.
🤖 The image on the right? Completely generated by AI. The person in that photo does not exist. And for the record—no one was in my home last night. 🤦🏾‍♂️

Let me be clear: I don’t think AI is inherently bad—no more than a knife is.
But just like a knife, AI can be misused. And there will be people who use this tool for more than it was meant for.

📩 DM me if you’re interested in joining my next AI workshop. I usually lead these in my professional role to support community leaders, but I’ll soon be offering them to the general public in my personal time.

Stay tuned for more—and in the meantime, question everything. 👀💭

Join us for the launch of Jewish Currents contributing writer Christopher Blackwell’s new book, "Ending Isolation: The Case Against Solitary Confinement." For this special event, Chris will be in conversation with advocates who work on ending solitary, including UTB's own: Johnny Perez of the National Religious Campaign Against Torutre and Anisah Sabur-Mumin and Jessica Sandoval. The conversation will be moderated by "Ending Isolation" co-author, legal scholar Deborah Zalesne.

This event, cosponsored by CUNY Law’s Abolitionist Law Organization, will take place at CUNY School of Law in Long Island City, Queens. The event is free and open to the public, but space is limited, so we recommend registering early to guarantee your spot.

"Ending Isolation" is now available for preorder. Purchase your copy today, and save 30 percent when you enter code BLACKWELL30 at checkout!

Day 17: Michael Jordan Born (1963)
🏀 Happy birthday to Michael Jordan, one of the greatest athletes of all time!
Quote: "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for." – Barack Obama

Day 16: Bessie Smith Born (1894)
🎶 Born in 1894, Bessie Smith became the 'Empress of the Blues,' paving the way for generations of artists.
Quote: "Truth is powerful and it prevails." – Sojourner Truth

Day 15: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass Meet (1872)
🤝 In 1872, Frederick Douglass met Susan B. Anthony, uniting the fights for racial and gender equality.
Quote: "When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world." – George Washington Carver

Day 14: Malcolm X Assassinated (1965)
🕊️ Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965, but his fight for Black liberation lives on.
Quote: "You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom." – Malcolm X

Day 13: Frederick Douglass' Birthday Observed
📖 Frederick Douglass, one of the greatest abolitionists, was born this month. His words still inspire change today.
Quote: "My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together." – Desmond Tutu