Comcast NBCUniversal is committed to advancing social justice and equality and is providing a $100 million, multi-year plan to support social impact programs. As part of its partnership with the Utah Division of Multicultural Affairs, Comcast NBCUniversal launched a 3-part Social Justice Series last September.
The series features keynote presentations from renown experts, panel discussions with local community leaders and is designed to inform and educate our communities around current social justice issues and systematic racism – with an emphasis on action.
One of our main goals with this project is to pay BIPOC people for their work in advancing anti-racism,” said Deneiva Knight, External Affairs Director at Comcast Utah. “For me, it’s important to acknowledge and compensate the people who are doing the work. Oftentimes, the BIPOC community is asked to come speak and teach social justice — for free — while at the same time, we’re dealing with our own trauma from racism.”
Comcast NBCUniversal compensated BIPOC experts and Utah community leaders over $80,000 dollars as part of this Social Justice Series. This support came when the pandemic and social unrest have particularly hard hit many in the BIPOC community.
One thousand people joined part-one and part-two of our first-ever Social Justice Series (#SJSSBeyondTheHashtag) virtual events, featuring Austin Channing Brown and Brea Baker.
Austin Channing Brown, New York Time’s Best-Selling Author of “I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness,” kicked off the series by exploring allyship and anti-racism and provided ways to create real change in the workplace and everyday life.
Brea Baker, an activist/organizer with a degree in Political Science from Yale University who contributed to dozens of electoral and advocacy campaigns, including the 2017 Women’s March, discussed how to be a young activist and support one.
Next up, Dr. Artika Tyner will lead part-three of the series, which will focus on how to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline. Check back here on January 18 for access to her series.