The Cleveland Cavaliers 15th annual Black Heritage Celebration (BHC) will tip off on Martin Luther King Jr. Day – Monday, January 21st when the Cavs take on the Chicago Bulls at Quicken Loans Arena at 1:00 p.m. The special afternoon matchup will begin a month-long celebration themed “Empowering and Inspiring One Generation to the Next.” The BHC, which is an expanded salute to Black History Month in February, recognizes the remarkable accomplishments of African Americans of today, and throughout history, who continue to pave the path for future generations.
The celebration in January and February will spotlight black history moments and achievements throughout the game presentation and will feature special halftime programming, beginning with an exciting performance by renowned musician Geoffrey Golden and Friends on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. There will also be special interviews and video shared, with Cavs players and legends, highlighting the important message of Community and Unity, as well as community outreach initiatives with both Cavs team and staff members across the organization participating in and volunteering their time to projects in Northeast Ohio in honor of Black History Month. Details regarding these additional events and projects will be announced soon separately.
“This year, by example, our hope is to inspire others to make a difference,” said Cavaliers Legend and BHC committee member Campy Russell. “Celebrating black history is about more than just acknowledging our past, it’s about recognizing the great accomplishments of African Americans of today with the goal of inspiring our future and our youth to realize their dreams.”
Signature Black Heritage Celebration theme nights at Cavs games in January and February include:
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: January 21st vs Chicago Bulls at 1:00 p.m.
The team will remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the pastor, activist and humanitarian who led the African American civil rights movements with a special halftime performance by Geoffrey Golden and Friends. Golden, the season seven winner of BET Sunday Best and Cleveland native, and his choir will perform an emotional ballad as a tribute to Dr. King.
Earlier in the day, the Cavs Academy team will host a FREE Martin Luther King Jr. Day Basketball Clinic at John Adams High School for kids ages 6-17 from various local community groups. Each participant will receive a reversible Cavs Academy jersey, a basketball and tickets to the Cavs game later that night.
February 2nd vs Dallas Mavericks at 7:30 p.m.
Throughout the game presentation, the team will celebrate historically black colleges and universities (HBCU). To begin the game, the national anthem will be performed by Ohio's Wilberforce University Choir. The night will be highlighted by a halftime performance by the acclaimed Howard University “Showtime” Marching Band. Past performances by the “Showtime” band have received national attention - playing at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the 56th Inaugural Parade for President Barack Obama, among many other special events. The team will also recognize participants from this season’s Marcus Graham Project workshop (more information below).
February 11th vs New York Knicks at 7:00 p.m.
The Cavaliers will host a unique in-game presentation and halftime featuring recent participants from the 2nd Annual Launch Test Kitchen Food Tasting & Business Development Experience. In continued partnership with the NAACP, the Cavs and Aramark teamed up for this event to welcome 15 black chefs who own local Cleveland restaurants, food trucks, and catering businesses. The chefs prepared their signature dishes for invited guests and judges to sample and vote on their favorite items.
February 23rd vs Memphis Grizzlies at 7:00 p.m.
To conclude the month-long program, the celebration will culminate with a night honoring and remembering “The Queen of Soul,” the late Aretha Franklin. Cynthia Minx, an accomplished Aretha Franklin tribute singer, will perform a stunning tribute to Franklin at halftime. In addition, the game presentation throughout the night will remember Franklin and her contributions to music and civil rights with in-game features and music.
Cavs BHC Extends to the Classroom
In addition to the celebration on the court, the Cavs have teamed up with the Marcus Graham Project to host the 5th annual Sports Marketing Workshop for diverse students and professionals interested in a sports marketing career. The workshop will take place January 30th through February 2nd at Quicken Loans Arena. The Marcus Graham Project is a network of diverse professionals formed with the purpose of developing the next generation of leadership by mentoring and training ethnically diverse men and women in all aspects of the advertising, media and marketing industry.
Workshop participants will receive first-hand knowledge from some of today’s top executives in the Sports Marketing industry. One standout participant from the workshop will earn the opportunity to be sponsored by the Cavs to attend MGP's iCR8 Summer Boot Camp in Dallas, Texas. All participants will be recognized at the Cavaliers game on February 2nd as part of the education themed game presentation.
To register for the MGP workshop, visit jobs.lever.co/marcusgrahamproject.
In addition to the celebration on the court and in the classroom, staff members across the Cavaliers organization have the opportunity to attend a Q&A session with Steven Caple Jr., the Cleveland-born director of Creed 2, along with a screening of the film. Every Cavs staff member will also enjoy the organization's annual soul food luncheon next month, which is a BHC tradition.
Fans can engage online and in social media throughout the month by visiting cavs.com/BHC and following the #CavsBHC hashtag on Twitter (@cavs), Instagram (@cavs), Facebook (Facebook.com/Cavs) and Snapchat (cavs).