Keeping a Promise to Black Boys in America

Last Friday we had the great honor of bringing our film American Promise to the 25th Session of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, through an invitation from the Ariel Foundation International. The documentary follows our son and his friend's education at the elite Dalton School in New York City, providing a window into the lives of two middle-class black families as they navigate the ups and down of parenting and educating their sons. 

After a presentation of clips from the film, our panel focused on the significant role implicit bias plays in the right to equal education for marginalized groups. The experience of African American boys within the educational system is not unique to the United States, though it is hardly addressed on the global stage. 

With community engagement tools like American Promise, we are countering the effects of harmful societal stigmas that weaken the development of a positive self-image. All boys, in the United States and across the world, deserve the opportunity to succeed in their education. Our story, which we have now shared with the world, is an invitation to join the global movement to support black male achievement and champion education equity in classrooms everywhere.

Representatives from over a hundred different nations attended the screening. It is our great hope that American Promise will inspire greater dialogue around the right to equal education and foster momentum towards a culture that supports and celebrates black male achievement. Success is our only option.