The mission of the Oliver White Foundation is to amplify Black Excellence as an avenue to illuminate disproportionate statistics of police brutality, and financially support charitable organizations in the Black community.
The Oliver White foundation was named after Oliver White Hill, the great civil rights attorney, to honor his benevolence and lifetime of work towards equality, most notably the Brown v Board of Education case.
“We have to talk about liberating minds as well as society.”
I have always been extremely grateful to have had soccer as an outlet in my life so after a three and a half year pro career and a lifetime of playing, I wanted to find a way to share my experience of how interconnective and cathartic soccer can be when addressing serious issues.
On June 6, 2020 I hosted an Instagram Live fundraiser in honor of George Floyd with my high school teammate Samer Abouhamad. For 8 minutes and 46 seconds we juggled a soccer ball for the time a Minneapolis Police officer fatally pressed his knee against George Floyd’s neck, and asked viewers to match our respective donations of $10 per minute the ball was in the air: we raised $11,230. Which was donated to BLACK LIVES MATTER Boston & Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp.
The incredible generosity by everyone who donated, helped, or participated in this fundraiser inspired me to start a foundation to accept donations and continue this conversation on a more permanent basis.
On July 11th, 2020 I launched this foundation while hosting a second Instagram Live fundraiser in honor of Eric Garner who was asphyxiated by NYCPD almost 6 years prior to the day. With two of my high school teammates, Samer Abouhamad and Mohammed Raheem, we juggled a soccer ball for 7 minutes to represent the time authorities allowed Eric Garner’s unconscious body to lay on the sidewalk without administering oxygen, CPR or other treatments; and again asking viewers to match our individual donations of $10 per minute the ball was in the air: we raised $4,258. Which was shared equally between BLACK LIVES MATTER Boston & The Loveland Foundation Therapy Fund.
“We seek success in Finland, // Are born and die in Maine. // In minor ways we differ, // In major we’re the same. // I note the obvious differences // Between each sort and type, // But we are more alike, my friends, // Than we are unalike. // We are more alike, my friends, // Than we are unalike.”
On August 30th, 2020 I hosted a third Instagram Live fundraiser and partnered with Valeo FC, a soccer club located in Newton, Massachusetts, to do so. Together we hosted a charity match between an Oliver White Foundation team comprised of a collection of Massachusetts players I have played with and against throughout my club career; versus Valeo FC players and coaches. Simultaneously Valeo FC was holding a back to school supply drive, and to complement these efforts the OW Foundation collected virtual donations for Boston Scores. The match raised $1,200.
The match can been seen here: Oliver White Foundation vs Valeo Foundation
After a distressing Spring of digitally witnessing police murdering black civilians (Daunte Wright, Ma’Khia Bryant, Walter Wallace Jr., and many others) and harassing an Army Lieutenant in uniform (Caron Nazario) over events that could have been handled better if a different responding force was contacted; I was desperate to find a way to contribute my voice and advocate for alternatives. To promote discussions on 911 substitutes, I walked a mile a day in the month of May 2021 and personally donated $10/mile walked to Casa Myrna: A Boston based provider of a 24/7 statewide TOLL-FREE domestic violence hotline [1-877-785-2020], shelters for domestic violence, human trafficking and trauma survivors, and numerous other resources. Along with many other appreciated donations, the walkathon fundraised $2,000.
Every mile walked over all 31 days recorded on Strava can be seen in this gallery.
In the spring of 2022, as highly disturbing but avoidable events like a Texas mass shooting killing 19 innocent children at school with two legally obtained semi-automatic weapons of war, or the re-evaluation of Roe v Wade potentially destroying the right to pregnancy related health care, both enabled by the supposed “pro-life” party, began to compile; I was inspired to consider what type of contribution I could make. Personally, an exasperating aspect of the “pro-life” party is their staunch commitment to forced childbirth, juxtaposed by little to zero investment in structural programs to support the resulting children and conspicuous disregard for a mother’s well-being or right to make a medical decision without the government’s intrusion. With this in mind, on May 26th, 2022 I organized the second Oliver White Foundation charity match, live streamed on Instagram, with all proceeds going towards South End Soccer: a sensational Boston non-profit that annually serves over 1,200 youth through FREE soccer programs, pushing equity in opportunities to play, and using soccer as a “hub” to connect neighbors from all backgrounds.
The charity match was won 3-0 by the OWF and raised $2,445 in donations.
In the Fall of 2023, I enrolled in a full-time Master’s of Business Administration program at a prestigious higher education institution that has a renowned focus on developing one’s intelligence quotient commensurately as much as one’s emotional quotient. There is undoubtedly a paucity of innovative programs of this nature, and that rarity was not only one of my main deciding factors but also inspired me to begin researching educational programs with this same modus operandi, but aimed at a younger age demographic than business school. This endeavor helped me discover Community of Unity. A remarkable education based non-profit in the Lower East Side that, when partnered with New Design High School, has curated a social-emotional learning style that helps teach and reach students. Inspired by this organization’s mission to develop IQ & EQ among high school age students, I organized a Oliver White Foundation x Community of Unity Creed 3 Private Screening. After renting out a theater using foundation resources, each seat in the theater was sold to a friend of the foundation and all proceeds from ticket sales were donated to Community of Unity.
The private screening was held March 4th, 2023; the day after the premiere of Creed 3, and raised a total of $3,575.
While I am proud to be able to combine things I love like soccer, blackness, philanthropy, culture and fashion into the Foundation. Without a seismic shift on an interpersonal level towards the belief black lives matter takes nothing away from other lives, and top down systemic changes that hold accountable police officers who perpetuate this system of oppression, the cycle of striving for equality for all will continue to be beholden to the social justice issue en vogue. If you are unable to contribute or donate I greatly appreciate your time and please know there are many other ways to get involved. The simplest is have a conversation with one other person who may disbelieve that racism or systemic oppression still exists. Or, amplify Black Excellence.