Statements
A Moment to Rejoice – And a Reminder of What’s Possible
The entire team at Breakthrough is ecstatic at the news that seven-time WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner has finally been released from her unjust imprisonment in Russia. After nearly a year of being detained under unimaginably harsh conditions thousands of miles away from her wife, family, friends, teammates and community, Brittney is at last being reunited…
Read MoreThe Woman Behind The Magic: Free Black Women’s Library Founder OlaRonke Akinmowo
In 2015, with only 100 books in tow and a brownstone stoop, Brooklyn, New York-based artist, set decorator, cultural worker and single mom OlaRonke Akinmowo launched The Free Black Women’s Library. Since then it has grown into a social art project that celebrates the brilliance, creativity, and diversity of Black women writers from all over…
Read MoreBrittney Griner’s Detention Shines Light On Pay Inequity In Professional Sports
Since February 2022, seven-time WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner, a current player with the Phoenix Mercury, has been detained in Russia due to the alleged presence of vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. After more than 148 days in Russian detention, Brittney’s trial finally began on July 7, 2022, and while we wait for…
Read MoreA Tale of Two Traffic Stops in the United States
Today the Organization Issued the Following Statement from President and CEO Nakisha M. Lewis: On June 27, 2022, a young Black man named Jayland Walker was murdered by police officers in Akron, OH. Walker, who was unarmed, was shot at over 90 times, with at least 60 bullets striking his body, ultimately causing him to…
Read MoreStatement on the Strikedown of Roe v. Wade on Friday, June 24, 2022
Today the Organization Issued the Following Statement from President and CEO Nakisha M. Lewis: Today the Supreme Court issued its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which has effectively struck down the half-century-old decision of Roe v. Wade, taking away the right of birthing people to privacy and access to an abortion. While…
Read MoreBreakthrough With Black Fatherhood
This Father’s Day, Breakthrough is celebrating the beauty of Black fatherhood. We’re honoring dads who identify within the LGBTQ+ community, as well as dads who have publicly demonstrated unwavering love and support for their cis, queer, trans and gender-expansive children. We know parenthood is never without its challenges. To thrive within the margin of the…
Read MoreStatement on White Supremacist Mass Shooting in Buffalo, New York on May 14th
Today the Organization Issued the Following Statement from President and CEO Nakisha M. Lewis: “Breakthrough joins the rest of the nation in mourning and grieving the lives taken tragically and hatefully by an unabashed white supremacist and domestic terrorist with no regard for human life, as clearly demonstrated by the monstrous events that took place in…
Read MoreBreakthrough Statement on the Appointment of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court
As a global organization committed to championing Black women and girls through the media, storytelling and narrative change, Breakthrough recognizes Judge Jackson’s appointment as powerful proof that representation truly does matter.
Read MoreFrom Ally to Accomplice: A Call To Action For Cisgender Women.
A message from Nakisha M. Lewis, Breakthrough’s President & CEOArt Credit: Kendrick Daye via The Marsha P. Johnson Institute Today is the International Transgender Day of Visibility, a time to celebrate the contributions of trans people and celebrate the trans and nonbinary community in all its diversity. The lives, work, cultural contributions, and activism of…
Read MoreKetanji Brown Jackson Is The Right Choice For The Supreme Court
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s experience with providing legal representation for people from underserved communities makes her better suited to make legal decisions that impact Black and Brown people… Ketanji Brown Jackson is one of the most qualified Supreme Court nominees we’ve ever witnessed. She will be the first justice with experience as a federal public defender, and the first since Justice Thurgood Marshall with significant experience as a criminal defense attorney on behalf of underserved and under-resourced defendants.
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