Many NBA players have spoken out about the racial injustices in this country, Portland Trail Blazers forward Carmelo Anthony is acting on it.
Over the past couple of months, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and Dwyane Wade have established the Social Change Fund. The organization is currently operating on the funds of these three athletes.
Once again showing what Portland Trail Blazers fans already know, Melo makes a significant impact both and off the floor.
The fund comes in light of the many social injustices seen in the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, along with many others.
Anthony spoke about this issue at the press announcement of the fund last July.
“We established the Social Change Fund to invest in and support organizations working to champion criminal justice reform, enact policy solutions, and advocate for the human rights of Black lives now and for generations to come,” Anthony said.
The fund also intends to further Black and Brown communities by increasing opportunities for voting and civic engagement. As we look toward the November 3rd election, the NBA has made voting rights one of the restart’s most significant focal points.
Throughout his career, Anthony has actively furthered social justice issues long before this pivotal decade in American history.
Fifteen years ago, he started the Carmelo Anthony Foundation to support low-income communities. The foundations’ impact stretches from disaster relief to establishing outreach programs and donations to other charitable causes.
In 2013, he established Melo7 Tech Partners to invest in and develop digital media companies from an entrepreneurial standpoint. On a larger scale, he helped develop the 2016 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle film in which he made a cameo.
As a fashion savant, he started the STAYME7O brand, which has been extremely successful. On his more exclusive lines, all proceeds go to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.
Dipping his foot in journalism, Anthony produced the SLAM special #ItStopsNow issue as a guest Editor-In-Chief. All the proceeds for the edition went to the Social Change Fund in its early stages.
The ten-time all-star is of Puerto Rican descent has also made an impact on the U.S. territory. He established the now-defunct Puerto Rico Football Club in 2015, which caused significant community outreach during its brief history.
Anthony started the show What’s In Your Glass, featuring a new weekly celebrity guest on the show on YouTube. In many of these episodes, he has gotten into meaningful political discussions with his celebrity fans over a glass of wine.
Safe to say that the Blazers star keeps himself extremely busy when he is not in the gym or on the court. That hard work has made a significant impact that will last long after his basketball career is over.
By the time it is all said and done, he will be among Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar when it comes to furthering social justice.