How do stigma and identity shape our health, our families, and our communities? From the stigma surrounding neurodivergence and mental health diagnoses, to addiction and substance use, to physical differences that mark people as “other,” stigma shapes who is believed, who receives care, and who feels a sense of belonging. In this panel, authors and experts will examine how confronting and understanding stigma is essential to building healthier futures.

Panelists:

• Nefertiti Austin is a writer and memoirist. She is the author of She’s Just Spirited: Parenting a Neurodivergent Child and the Diagnosis That Changes Everything. She also wrote about the erasure of diverse voices in motherhood in the critically acclaimed Motherhood So White: A Memoir of Race, Gender and Parenting in America and her work has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Huffington Post, The Nation, Romper, Parents Magazine, and many other publications. She was the subject of an article on race and adoption in The Atlantic and has appeared on numerous shows, podcasts, and radio programs, including The Today Show and multiple NPR outlets. Nefertiti is the proud adoptive mother of two children and lives in Los Angeles.
• Steve Sussman, Ph.D., FAAHB, FAPA, FSPR (Ph.D., UIC, 1984) is professor of population and public health sciences, psychology, and social work at USC. He studies the addictions and translation research, with 600+ publications. He was primary developer of several evidence-based programs (Project TND, TNT, and EX). He is a Fellow of AAHB, APA Division 50, and SPR. He is the Editor of Evaluation & the Health Professions (SAGE Publications). He has written several books. His newest book is Understanding Stigma and Health (Elgar, 2026). Dr. Sussman will share information about stigma concepts and solutions.
• Robin Stevens (moderator), PhD, MPH is a health communication scholar focused on achieving health equity in African American and Latinx communities in the United States. She has pioneered digital epidemiological methods to investigate sexual health, mental health, and substance use in the context of the digital neighborhood. She uses interdisciplinary community-engaged approaches to improve the health and well-being of youth of color, leveraging digital technologies. More recently, her work has focused on youth driven research translation for environmental justice, adolescent mental health, and tobacco use. Her work has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, Meta, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Dr. Stevens is an Associate Professor of Communication at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and the Director of the Health Equity & Media Lab. She received her AB from Harvard College, MPH from University of Michigan, and PhD from the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania.

This panel is part of the 2026 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USC.