​Join OPEN, Hit Me Up NYC, and Open Social for a thought-provoking panel discussion exploring relationship liberation, sexual freedom, and the growing push for non-monogamy rights and acceptance. Hear some of your favorite educators and creators discuss a range of topics from the historical roots of non-monogamy, the impact of intersecting identities, queerness, community, and our vision for a more accepting inclusive future (and how we get there!). This event is a fundraiser for OPEN, an grassroots advocacy nonprofit working to advance rights and acceptance for non-monogamous families and individuals. We hope to see you there!

​Panelists:

• ​Lola Jean is a Sex Educator, Fetish Wrestler, headmistress of 7 Days of Domination, and World Record Holder for Volume Squirting (solo.) providing the No Frills Sex Education we both need and deserve. Lola brings a refreshing understanding to sex, sexuality, and kink to push individuals past what they think they are capable of. Lola offers events, classes, and talks to help people have better sex with themselves and each other like Pegging, Squirting, and Libido Awakening. There is so much we are not exploring due to fear. Fear of how society will view us. How our partners will view us. How our peers will view us. Lola helps individuals stop making excuses and unlock who they are and what they deserve.

• ​Evita “Lavitaloca” Sawyers is an ethical non-monogamy coach, speaker, and educator. She is the creator of “Today’s Polyamory Reminder” and is also the subject of the groundbreaking polyamorous documentary “Poly-Love”. She specializes in navigating the transition from monogamy to non-monogamy, issues of jealousy, and articulating the difficult emotions we experience and how to communicate those emotions in healthy ways to our partners. Evita provides guidance and support for individual non-monogamous journeys and helping couples (or more) talk through issues with an objective party.  Her approach is both frank yet empathetic and she is appreciated for her vulnerable openness about her own challenges in non-monogamy and helping others to grow.”

• ​Gabrielle Smith (she/her) is a Brooklyn-based writer, social media strategist and non-monogamy educator whose writing has been featured in Cosmopolitan, Insider, Men’s Health, and is marked by its focus on marginalized people and voices. Her work focuses on mental health, race, class, intersectional feminism, love, sex and polyamory, and seeks to illuminate and educate on the people and places that folks often overlook, or forget to honor. Her values of community, justice and radical honesty reverberate through all of her work, as does her belief everyone has right to have a seat a the table.

• ​Emily Matlack (she/her) is a cohost of the Multiamory Podcast who has been fascinated by relationships since she was young, and has immersed herself in relationship education and creating healthy communication tools for nearly a decade. She is the co-author of Multiamory: Essential Tools for Modern Relationships. Additionally, she is an actor, singer, and proud vegan. She is the funny bone of the Multiamory trio, and she'll also kick your ass at Mario Kart. 😝 In addition to laughing and crying about relationships on air each week, you can spot her singing and dancing in a play, performing in Hong Kong or Shanghai Disneyland, or serving every vegan who ever lived at the plant-based restaurant at which she works.

• ​Brett Chamberlin (he/him) is a social impact organizer with over a decade of advocacy and nonprofit leadership experience. Brett is the founder and executive director of OPEN, the Organization for Polyamory and Ethical Non-monogamy, which works to advance legal rights and cultural acceptance for non-monogamous families and relationships. Prior to launching OPEN, Brett worked in the environmental nonprofit sector where he co-founded the Post-Landfill Action Network to support student-led sustainability initiatives on college campuses, and served as the Director of Community Engagement at The Story of Stuff Project where he led the global grassroots distribution of their Emmy-winning documentary, The Story of Plastic. 

​Presented by:

• ​OPEN (Organization for Polyamory and Ethical Non-monogamy) is an advocacy nonprofit working to advance legal rights and cultural acceptance for non-monogamous families and relationships of all varieties. OPEN's work includes advocacy for expanded legal protections, free resources and support for non-monogamous communities, and the global Week of Visibility for Non-monogamy (July 15-21)

• ​Hit Me Up is New York City’s curated community for poly and kink. We run meetups, classes parties, and teaches kink skills at venues around the city. We got our start running small events for our friends that quickly outgrew multiple venues. Now we are working to build the kink and poly community that NYC deserves—safer, friendlier, and weirder.

• ​Open Social is a platonic community for those who identify as open. We create a space for those who are open to connect and support each other. We curate intentional experiences on a monthly and quarterly basis and provide a platform for members to self-organize.

​100% of your contributions will go to covering the cost of the event and to supporting OPEN's nonprofit advocacy efforts. Learn more at www.open-love.org.