My Brother's Keeper Alliance

Mission & History

We believe communities are the unit of change to realize improved life outcomes for boys and young men of color. Research shows that the collective work of community leaders, members, and public and private agencies pursuing the same goals for boys and young men of color can lead to sustainable, place-based change.

Our History

President Obama launched the My Brother’s Keeper program in February 2014, in response to the death of Trayvon Martin. The program sought to address the persistent opportunity gaps boys and young men of color face and to ensure all young people can reach their full potential.

We believe communities are the unit of change to realize improved life outcomes for boys and young men of color. Research shows that the collective work of community leaders, members, and public and private agencies pursuing the same goals for boys and young men of color can lead to sustainable, place-based change.

My Brother’s Keeper Alliance at the Obama Foundation

In 2018, 19 organizations across 10 states and Puerto Rico were chosen as national models to expand evidence-based initiatives to reduce youth violence, grow effective mentorship programs, and measurably improve the lives of boys and young men of color. The MBK Alliance team is working with these Impact and Seed communities to support the development of long-term strategic plans that chart life outcomes changes for boys and young men of color across the six milestones.

The Alliance is working with partners to offer tools, resources, and convening opportunities designed to support the growing network of nearly 250 MBK Communities that participated in the My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge.

Our goal is to bolster the network of MBK Communities and all those that share our mission while promoting action, strengthening interventions, and sharing practices and policies that work.

Our approach

MBK Alliance works to unleash the power of communities working together to solve problems for boys and young men of color, at a level to improve real life outcomes. We believe communities are the unit of change to realize improved life outcomes for boys and young men of color. Research shows that collective work of community leaders, members, and public and private agencies pursuing the same goals for boys and young men of color can lead to sustainable, place-based change.

We believe that cross-sector collaborative action is central to how communities will achieve improved outcomes for boys and young men of color.

  • Local leaders

    Local leaders champion efforts across departments to shift policies and improve outcomes for boys and young men of color.

  • Nonprofits

    Nonprofits are healthy and increasing scale of high-quality service offerings directed towards boys and young men of color from cradle to career.

  • Corporations

    Corporations commit resources to support boys and young men of color and create targeted hiring and retention strategies

  • Philanthropy 

    Philanthropy commits sustained financial resources to support boys and young men of color.

  • Residents

    Residents (e.g., YOUTH) are engaged and commit time and their voices to shape priorities and initiatives.

Support boys and young men of color

Help unleash the power of communities working together by giving to the Obama Foundation today.

Donate to the Barack Obama Foundation. The Barack Obama Foundation is registered as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (EIN 46-4950751).

missing

6 Key Milestones to Success

The MBK Equity Framework will help you uncover the disparate outcomes for boys and young men of color in your community.

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Our challenges

Our country's persistent social inequities are widespread, rooted in structural and institutional racism, and prevent our boys and young men of color from reaching their full potential.

  • Poverty

    Black, American Indian, and Hispanic children are between six and nine times more likely than white children to live in areas of concentrated poverty.

  • Discipline

    Black students represent 16 percent of the public school student population, but make up 42 percent of those suspended more than once, and 34 percent of students expelled.

  • Employment

    A Black baby boy born 25 years ago has a 1 in 2 chance of being employed today.

  • Crime

    While only 6% of the overall population, Black males account for nearly half of all murder victims.

How we do it

My Brother’s Keeper Alliance at the Obama Foundation

A Black man wearing a sweatshirt holds onto the rim of a basketball net, looking upward. The sky behind is a deep blue.
  • MBK Alliance
  • Youth
Freedom Summer 2023

Check out the Freedom Summer 2023 grant recipients!

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Painting
  • MBK Alliance
  • Youth
Freedom Summer 2022

Creating Safe and Engaging Spaces for Youth

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  • MBK Alliance
  • Programs
MBKA: Eight Years of Impact

The My Brother’s Keeper Alliance began as a call to action for the nation to address the persistent opportunity gaps boys and young men of color face and to ensure all young people can reach their full potential.

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  • MBK Alliance
  • Health & Wellbeing
Six reflections on Black mental health and self-care

Here at the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, we support communities of color across the United States and Puerto Rico that are taking action to create systemic solutions to the most pressing issues facing boys and young men of color.

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A young man with a deep skin tone wearing a gray hoodie and black jacket smiles toward the camera. There are other men and young men around him with deep skin tones. We see the sky slightly above their heads.

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