Elevating Empathy with Brandon Farbstein

CONTENT WARNING: Please be advised that this episode includes conversations involving suicide, bullying, anti-semitism, and PTSD. This episode, Judy interviews Brandon Farbstein. They discuss their many shared experiences of public speaking, Judaism, theatre, writing, and more. Brandon also shares the personal stories that led him to where he is today, and why his work centers around elevating empathy. Find this episode's transcript here. Brandon Farbstein is a 22-year-old is a speaker, activist, and author. He was diagnosed with a rare form of dwarfism at the age of 2. After a severe battle with cyberbullying in high school, he decided to share his story - to both offer hope and to enact change. Brandon was the driving force behind two new pieces of legislation that were signed into law in Virginia, one on bullying prevention and the other requiring empathy and emotional intelligence to be taught in all K-12 classrooms across the state. He has written two books, Ten Feet Tall and A Kids Book About Self-Love. He frequently advises foundations, boards, and large scale organizations on their DEI efforts, especially towards the disability community. He was named in Instagram's #19under19 as one of the 19 most influential teenagers in the world with his mission to Elevate Empathy®. In 2020, Brandon made his runway debut at NY Fashion Week wearing Tommy Hilfiger Adaptive. Brandon's website A Kids Book About Self-Love Ten Feet Fall: Step Into Your Truth and Change Your Freaking World Brandon's TEDxRVA Talk If you'd like to submit a question for Ask Judy, send it to [email protected] or DM Judy on Instagram or Twitter. Find a shortened video version of this interview on Judy's YouTube channel. Outro music by Gaelynn Lea: https://violinscratches.com/