Remember when Joe and Clara Wu Tsai announced a $50 million commitment over 10 years to benefit BIPOC equality and social justice initiatives?
.@nyliberty owners Joe Tsai & Clara Wu Tsai have pledged $50 million to help benefit BIPOC initiatives over the next decade. pic.twitter.com/vxXcY6zlDC
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) August 25, 2020
That was announced back in August. On Dec. 17, the New York Liberty’s owners announced the first five recipients of that grant that aims to address economic and systemic injustices in hopes of closing the racial divide – with an emphasis on the team’s Brooklyn home base.
The first five are all Black leaders based in Brooklyn.
They are Dr. Uche Blackstock (ER doctor and CEO/founder of Advancing Health Equity), Ayana Johnson (founder of Urban Ocean Lab and one of Elle’s 27 Women Leading on Climate), Natasha Alford (Senior Correspondent, VP of Digital Content for TheGrio), Rafiq Kalam Id-Din II (founder of Ember Charter Schools and #BlackLedSchoolsMatter initiative) and Michael “Zaki” Smith (activist, barber).
They are on the ground day in and day out — working to eliminate racial disparities in our healthcare system, advocating for environmental justice, amplifying the untold stories of Black Americans, mentoring young people of color, and fighting on the front lines of the most pressing social justice issues of our time. We are honored to support their anti-racist work and to invest in creating a more just and inclusive Brooklyn through scalable, proven initiatives.
–Clara Wu Tsai, New York Liberty co-owner (Brooklyn Nets release)
