In solidarity with communities across the country, the Sacramento Kings will continue our commitment to utilize our platform to influence social and systemic change to address institutional racism.
Below are some immediate next steps we will take internally and externally to promote understanding and diversity to impact change. We arrived at this plan after extensive conversations over recent weeks based on feedback from our community partners and team members.
We are dedicated to doing the work and remain focused to being a part of the solution through sustained action.
The Sacramento Kings Pledge to:
1. Activate Team Up for Change: We have partnered with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx on a PSA urging unity and action in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of police. We will partner with the Timberwolves, Lynx and Milwaukee Bucks to host the third Team Up for Change summit in the near future to address issues of social injustice with the goal of working towards more equitable communities.
2. Ongoing Funding for Kings & Queens Rise Youth: To support our ongoing commitment to investing in transformational change for Black youth in our community we will donate $75,000 to collaborate on a series of youth and young adult-led Kings and Queens Rise workshops, launch a virtual summer Kings and Queens Rise Co-ed Youth NBA2K League in partnership with Build.Black., and support the Black Child Legacy Campaign (BCLC) Youth Violence Prevention Program. We will provide BCLC Community Incubator Leads with NBA mental health resources and partner with Kaiser Permanente to host resilience and well-being sessions.
3. Empower Currently & Formerly Incarcerated Individuals: We will continue to work with the Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC) to provide resources and mentoring to support career development for formerly incarcerated persons. We know that marginalized populations,
particularly Black individuals, are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system. We pledge to work alongside ARC to empower individuals who have been impacted by the criminal justice system to thrive in our community.
4. Increase Support for the Local Black Community: We will increase our commitment to dedicating time in underserved neighborhoods by providing resources, volunteering, mentoring, and championing initiatives that support platforms and opportunity for our Black community.
5. Invest in Black-Owned Businesses: We commit to reviewing and assessing our diversity sourcing practices and pledge to foster economic equity in Sacramento by highlighting and partnering with regional small and large Black-owned businesses. Additionally, we will support financial literacy programs and career development for local Black youth.
6. Amplify Black Voices: We commit to building upon our amplification of Black voices, creators, and business owners on our social media channels and throughout our game programming year-round.
7. Ongoing Education: Learning is an essential step towards meaningful change, and we will continue to cultivate and share an evolving list of educational resources (books, articles, podcasts, movies, entertainment, and more) with team members and across our digital channels. In addition, we will equip team members with training and tools around communication skills and tactics to ensure we practice empathy in our conversations.
8. Engage in Uncomfortable Conversations: We commit, guided by our Diversity & Inclusion Council, to meet regularly as an organization for open and honest dialogue. In addition, we will continue to team up with experts to further educate ourselves in an effort to combat implicit and explicit bias.
9. Further Accountable Hiring Practices: We commit to holding ourselves accountable for increasing the number of Black people who are represented at all levels, from interns to executives, and requiring all hires are sourced from a diverse group of candidates.
10. Rally the Vote to Make Our Voices Heard: We commit to mobilize civic participation by hosting voter registration workshops for our team members and community and providing employees with a paid day off for election days. We will continue to lead and relaunch a coalition of professional sports teams to encourage voter registration and turnout.
As an organization, we are committed to reviewing and updating our pledge to our Black community on an ongoing basis. We are hopeful about the future and dedicated to action today, tomorrow and until we see meaningful change.