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The
Lasting Campaign for Black Male Achievement
Campaign for Black Male Achievement Leaders -
Shawn Dove (left) and Rashid Shabazz (right)
By Kenneth H.
Zimmerman
U.S.
Programs
Open Society
Foundations
December 17, 2014
For a society to be truly open,
it must ensure that all of its members have full and equal access to economic,
social, and political opportunities. A core element of our work at the Open
Society Foundations is to challenge and confront those barriers that undermine
such opportunities-particularly for communities that are historically
marginalized and vulnerable.
Over six years ago, the Open
Society Foundations expanded its historic support for racial justice in the
United States by initiating an effort specifically targeted at the challenges
confronting black men and boys: the Campaign for Black Male Achievement
(CBMA). The reason was simple: the United States cannot realize its aspirations
as a society without tackling head-on its legacy that limits the potential of
African American males.
Over the intervening years, CBMA
has led us forward, and we are excited to announce that the campaign will now
spin off to continue its work as an independent organization in a new and
enhanced form.
When CBMA first launched, there
was precious little philanthropy dedicated specifically to addressing the
special racial and gender barriers preventing boys and men of color from
achieving their economic, political, educational, and social potential. In
recent years, a number of foundations have become joint leaders through efforts,
such as the California Endowment's Sons and Brothers campaign, the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation's Forward Promise initiative, and the John S. and James L.
Knight Foundation's Black Male Engagement work, among others.
Today, in part due to CBMA's
efforts, there is an unprecedented number of organizations dedicated to carrying
this banner-including the recently formed Executives' Alliance to Expand
Opportunities for Boys and Men of Color, a coalition of more than 40 foundations
(including the Open Society Foundations, which continues to play a leadership
role on the steering committee). And earlier this year, President Obama
announced the My Brother's Keeper initiative, putting black male achievement on
an even more prominent platform for the remainder of this administration and
beyond.
The work done by CBMA's leaders,
Shawn Dove and Rashid Shabazz, has helped start to change the narrative-and
create a black male achievement movement in this country. This has involved
identifying and lifting up innovators and building and expanding a network of
leaders and organizations dedicated to this cause. By spinning off as a
standalone organization this January-a step first suggested by Shawn several
years ago-CBMA is poised to move to the next level.
The new entity will keep the same
name, and the same focus: to help foster the growth, sustainability, and impact
of organizations working to improve the lives of black boys and men. And it will
incorporate the work of the Institute for Black Male Achievement, which was
created in late 2012 with a grant of $4 million from Open Society and eight
funding partners.
Tonya Allen, CEO of the Skillman
Foundation, will serve as CBMA's founding board chair, and will be joined on the
board by Geoffrey Canada, founder of the Harlem Children's Zone and board member
of Open Society's U.S. Programs; William C. Bell, CEO of the Casey Family
Programs; and Wendell Pritchett, interim dean of the University of Pennsylvania
Law School. The Silicon Valley Community Foundation will serve as CBMA's fiscal
sponsor.
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