George M. Johnson, an award-winning writer, author and executive producer, will be the next speaker in the Bucknell Forum 2023-24 series, presenting on the theme “Freedom of Expression” Tuesday, Feb. 27, at 7:30 p.m. in Leanne Freas Trout Auditorium (Room 100), Vaughan Literature Building. They will then engage in a limited Q&A session, where they will answer questions from Bucknell students, the news release said.

Johnson is the fourth of five nationally renowned speakers participating in this year’s Bucknell Forum — a speaker series that since 2007 has featured national leaders, scholars and commentators who have examined various issues from multidisciplinary and diverse viewpoints.

Johnson is the author of the New York Times bestseller young-adult memoir All Boys Aren’t Blue, in which they discuss adolescence and growing up as a young Black queer boy in New Jersey through a series of powerful essays. The book was also named a Best Book of the Year by Amazon, Kirkus Reviews, and the New York and Chicago public libraries.

As a journalist, Johnson wrote for major outlets, including Teen Vogue, Entertainment Tonight, NBC, and Buzzfeed. In 2019, Johnson was awarded the Salute to Excellence Award by the National Association of Black Journalists for their article “When Racism Anchors Your Health” in Vice Magazine.

Johnson was listed as one of The Root’s 100 Most Influential African Americans in 2020, Out’s 100 Most Influential LGBTQ People in 2021, and in 2022, was honored as part of TIME100 Next, a list of the most influential people in the world.

All Bucknell Forum events are free and open to the public. Tickets are not required for this event. An ASL interpreter will be signing at the event for the hearing-impaired community. Attendees who need this service should contact sebright@bucknell.edu for arrangements.