Black girls and young women have been on the frontlines of fighting for racial and gender equity, but their stories and lives are often overlooked or erased.

According to the Ms. Foundation for Women landmark study on philanthropy, women and girls of color account for 0.5% of $66.9 billion given by foundations, totaling just $5.48 per woman and girls of color in the United States. In 2017, one of the latest years for which comprehensive data is available, less than $15 million was specified as benefiting Black women and girls.  

We believe investing in Black girls and young women is necessary, urgent, and just — for our collective freedom and to ensure that all Black lives are viewed as valuable, today and tomorrow. That is why we launched the Black Girl Freedom Fund (BGFF) in September 2020, our largest initiative to date.

BGFF is part of the #1Billion4BlackGirls campaign, a 10-year philanthropic initiative designed to invest one billion dollars in the brain trust, innovation, health, safety, education, artistic visions, research, and joy of Black girls and their families.  Other groups participating in this campaign include the Ms. Foundation for Women and Black Girls Dream Fund from the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium.

The co-founders of the BGFF are all Black women and Femme activists, artists, educators, organizers, and philanthropists: Dr. Monique Couvson (Grantmakers for Girls of Color); LaTosha Brown (Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium); Tarana Burke (‘me too.’ Movement); Fatima Goss Graves (National Women’s Law Center); Joanne N. Smith (Girls for Gender Equity); Salamishah Tillet (A Long Walk Home); Scheherezade Tillet (A Long Walk Home); and Teresa C. Younger (Ms. Foundation for Women). Read their open letter published in Essence here.