Elisa Hategan
About Elisa
ELISA HATEGAN is an author, public speaker, journalist, filmmaker, the founder of the Changemaker Project, and a Regional Coordinator for Central Canada and the United States at Against Violent Extremism (AVE), a global network of former extremists and survivors of extremist violence working in partnership with ISDGlobal, a London, UK NGO and think tank creating operational responses to violent extremism and radicalization.
As a teenager, Elisa was the inspiration behind the 1998 CBC film White Lies, which starred Sarah Polley as a fictionalized character based on Elisa's story, and reached millions of viewers. Her story has since been published in the memoir Race Traitor: The True Story of Canadian Intelligence's Greatest Cover-Up.
Elisa is an educator on far-right extremism and subject matter expert on anti-racism initiatives, extremist political movements and terrorist recruitment tactics. She has been interviewed by CBC, CTV, CityTV, BBC, Global TV, Toronto Sun, Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, Metro News, Macleans, National Post, Newsweek Magazine, Now Magazine, Xtra, Vision TV, Ottawa Citizen, Canadian Jewish News and various international media. She has been featured globally in numerous press features and documentaries, and appeared as a keynote speaker for Toronto City Hall, LGBT, Jewish and community groups, high schools and universities across North America and New Zealand - see Press Clips and Projects.
Elisa's articles have appeared in prominent newspapers such as Canadian Jewish News, NOW Magazine, Global News and Macleans Magazine, while her poetry and prose have appeared in prominent literary journals such as The Fiddlehead, Grain Magazine and CV2. She is a multiple grants and awards-winner from the Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council.
A magna cum laude University of Ottawa graduate with a double major in Criminology and Psychology, Elisa has a Journalism certificate from Michigan State University and has studied Social Media Marketing at George Brown College. She is the co-founder of a Toronto LGBT writers group.
As a creative writing facilitator, she has provided art workshops to teenagers and female prison inmates and is dedicated to promoting artistic expression in the community, particularly among low-income women and at-risk youth.
She currently lives in the Toronto area.
Book Elisa as a speaker for your event.
Download Elisa's Speaker / Author Bio.
White Lies, a film based on Elisa Hategan's life.
PLEASE NOTE: To pre-register or request information about my upcoming six-week writing course The Magic of Memoir: Discover the Power of Finding Your Voice, please email me directly for the syllabus. The course is limited to six participants. Cost: $249 for a 6-week intensive, which covers partial editorial review of your manuscript and rewriting assistance.
