NBA stars Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul are helping to change the impact trajectory of two Black-led organizations.
The organization, Social Change Fund United (SCFU), recently announced that $230,000 will be granted to two Chicago-based organization Gray Matter Experience and the Los Angeles non-profit All Star Code to create the SCFU “We Got Next” program, per an exclusive announcement from EBONY. The initiative will strive to equip youth with tools to launch their own businesses. The effort aims to serve 1,000 members in Black and brown communities, per the outlet.
Founder of Gray Matter Experience, Britney Robbins launched the non-profit for high school students when she saw the lack of resources and Black mentors available to young students interested in starting their own businesses. Robbins previously shared, “It was concerning that although we were encouraging minority students to pursue entrepreneurship as a viable option, even as an adult, the co-working and incubator spaces I visited had very few, if any, people that looked like me. I decided Gray Matter would be the solution to changing the narrative and providing a solution to the knowledge, resource and access gap for founders of color, starting with the youth.”
SCFU has partnered with Stackwell Capital to launch the SCFU Legacy initiative to offer small business grants to six minority-owned businesses based in Los Angeles. The organization is backed by noteworthy leaders across various sectors including WNBA players Natasha Cloud and Candace Parker who act as members of its Executive Council and Creative Arts Agency executives Callie Curry and Hillary Thomas as members of its advisory board.
“We’re excited to launch a new dimension of SCFU and to clarify our purpose of empowering underrepresented communities,” said SCFU Executive Director Aida Morrow in a statement to EBONY. “Through this redirection, we hope to light the way for a more inclusive future to unlock potential, bring on new partners and authentically uplift the communities in which we serve.”
Anthony, Paul and Wade launched the organization in 2020 to help further equity, social and criminal justice reform in Black and brown communities.