A Harlem-based youth organization raised more than $1 million at an honorary gala in Midtown on May 12. Many recognizable actors and artists were in attendance at The Brotherhood / Sisterhood Sol 13th annual gala, including actor Jeffrey Wright and Carrie Mae Weems, who were awarded at the event for supporting the organization’s mission and raising the money, said the group’s executive director.
“The Brotherhood / Sister Sol is an organization that is dedicated to helping young people understand the political realities of our age and to helping them become social change makers,” said Khary Lazarre-White. “We believe this work is done via education, organizing and the arts — and we are so pleased to have honored two artists whose work and life missions are so intertwined with social.”
With the funds the company will use that towards investing in various types programming geared for more than 1,000 city youngsters, he said.
And they will have a bigger home in the near future as the organization plans to start construction on a space in November, according to Lazarre-White. The spanking new location will be able to accommodate the much needed space to begin more opportunities for children and employees with training facilities, technology hub, and an event space.
“This development allows for the creation of the necessary physical site for an organization that is being modeled across the country. This new building will allow us to build an expanded state of the art site for our children,” he said. “This is solely a home for the development of The Brotherhood/Sisterhood Sol — a space to work to change policies that will more broadly and systemically help these children, and a building to train the field so that others can improve their youth development outcomes. We are excited and proud to announce this vitally important step.”
The Brotherhood / Sisterhood Sol is a nationally-known organization founded in 1995 as a social justice group focused on providing opportunities to children facing inequality. They offer year-round after school programs and training to empower and prepare young adults for careers.
Lazarre-White said that giving children the chances will best put them on the right path into becoming champions for social advancement.
“We are deeply rooted in teaching young people to form and hone a moral and ethical code and to undergo a political transformation that leads to understanding the inequity that our youth face directly,” he said. “So that through this education, they can become social change makers.”
