Borelli to Speak at Conservative Event

Conservative speaker Deneen Borelli will visit Toledo on May 21 for a Northwest Ohio Conservative Coalition event.

Borelli’s husband Tom will also speak. Borelli is FOX News contributor, director of outreach for the grassroots group FreedomWorks and author of “Blacklash: How Obama and the Left Are Driving Americans to the Government Plantation.”

While in Toledo, Borelli said she will address her experiences a “female black conservative.”

She will also talk about the “black liberal establishment,” she said.

“I believe for many, many years the black community has been held hostage by the message from the black liberal establishment, and that is that blacks are victims and need the government to get ahead,” Borelli said. “I learned early on, it’s hard work, perseverance, equality, education — those are the keys to success.”

Borelli, a New Jersey native, worked for Philip Morris while earning her college degree. After 11 years of working and going to school, she received her degree from Pace University.

“I didn’t rely on government to get my college degree. It was my planning and my hard work,” she said. After she left Philip Morris, Borelli began volunteering for Congress of Racial Equality, where she became interested in politics.

Borelli said she has faced negative reactions for her beliefs.

“I’ve been called an Aunt Jemima, Uncle Tom, a traitor, a token. Really, that just tells me my message is getting through and people are trying to intimidate and keep me from getting through and empowering people,” she said. “I’ve met a number of black conservatives who are being more vocal about their values and their beliefs.”

The event, which includes dinner, runs from 6:30-9:30 p.m. May 21 at the Holy Trinity Cathedral Banquet Hall, 802 N. Superior St. Tickets are $35 and are available at http://www.eventbrite.com/event/6397305513.