The NBA Foundation Donated $4.8M to 12 Organizations Providing Black Youth With Economic Opportunities

The professional basketball nonprofit is staying true to their dues with the recent donation of $4.8 million to 12 various organizations that are dedicated to the youth, NewsOne reports. 

Two years ago, The NBA foundation made a commitment to donate $300 million to charitable foundations that are actively working to transform and provide economic opportunities to Black youth. So far, the foundation has donated $50 million and is continuing to uphold their promise by donating $4.8 million in grants to 12 nonprofit organizations. These various organizations are dedicated to social justice reform and provide resources to many causes, such as formerly incarcerated youth, college students, BIPOC, and low-income families. The organizations include 10,000 degrees; Drive Change, Inc; Action for Boston Community Development, Inc; Baton Rouge Youth Coalition; Bottom Line; Center for Black Educator Development; ELSO, Inc; Kenwood Oakland Community Organization;  Mosaic Youth Theater of Detroit; PeerForward and STEM NOLA.

One nonprofit who received the grant is Avenues for Justice (AFJ). The New York City-based organization has spent the last 40 years keeping teenagers and young adults out of prison and providing them with alternative forms of discipline. The grant money is helping the nonprofit further the efforts of their HIRE UP program, an initiative that provides court-involved and at-risk youth job and learning opportunities.

Executive Director of the NBA Foundation Greg Taylor praised the organization for their tireless work, stating, “The organization’s dedication to intervention and diversion for youth in systematically disadvantaged communities dates back decades, and we look at the continued growth of its impact on the trajectory of Black youth in the U.S.”

“The vision of the NBA Foundation overlaps with the goals of Avenues for Justice and will allow us to expand our programming of skills training, mentorship, and job training for underrepresented youth,” AFJ Board Chairperson Alanna Rutherford said in a statement. “By providing the means to establish a solid economic foundation, the Foundation grant will assist in achieving Avenues for Justice’s mission to divert underrepresented, at-risk New York City youth from lives of crime.” 

This foundation is the first nonprofit established by a sports league to uplift the Black community, and we’d love to see more of this across the board! 

Photo: Black Press USA/Stacie Joy