Warren Buffett’s Son To Invest $90M In Young Women Of Color
In recent years, there have been pushes to celebrate Black women and girls, a demographic that has historically been discriminated against or flat out ignored. The “Black Girls Rock” and “Black Girls Are Magic” movements have been at the forefront of the call to recognized the worth of Black women. However, these movements are largely run and supported by Black women. Now, it appears that the son of one of the world’s most wealthy men and his wife have heeded the call. Through their NoVo Foundation, Peter Buffett, son of Warren Buffett, and his wife, Jennifer, have pledged to invest $90 million into girls and young women of color in the United States.
According to the NoVo Foundation website, at the core of the seven-year investment is “the belief that girls and young women of color are experts in their own lives and must be invested in as they lead efforts to transform systems of inequity.” The site states:
The NoVo Foundation, created in 2006 by Jennifer and Peter Buffett, today announced a seven-year, $90 million commitment to support and deepen the movement for girls and young women of color in the United States. The funds will support grassroots programming and advocacy, as well as national-level policy and culture change efforts, that are girl-led, girl-driven and designed to address the systemic and institutional challenges faced by girls and young women of color across the country. This commitment builds on the leadership of women of color who have worked for years to further this movement.
As part of the process for identifying how to invest this $90 million commitment, NoVo will launch a series of regional learning sessions across the country to hear directly from girls and young women of color, as well as advocates. The sessions are designed to engage and invite ideas from local communities on what is needed to grow the movement in a lasting and meaningful way.
“Inherently, girls and young women of color already hold incredible power and potential. This work is about dismantling the barriers that prevent them from realizing that potential and leading us toward a truly transformative movement for change,” said co-president Jennifer Buffett. Peter Buffett added, “Our goal is to create the conditions for change by advancing the work of the real experts in this movement: girls and young women of color and the advocates working with them.”
Read more about the investment here.
Read here about RZA’s chess initiative for kids in St. Louis.
