United By Black, Powered By All: UB, The Call to Take Action.   Following George Floyd’s murder, a united group of community, nonprofit and business leaders launched a movement that now will go far beyond writing letters of concern, and AALF was chosen to lead. Collectively we aim to get at the root of disparities, heal the past and transform the trajectory of the future. The United By Black, Powered By All initiative reflects our commitment to systemic change, by mapping strategy and creating impact. You’ll be hearing a lot about this moving forward. We plan to engage you, in taking action, to improve the quality of life for Black Minnesotans.

The Josie R. Johnson Leadership Academy: The Leadership Academy is a continuous hands-on path to personal and professional discovery directed by facilitators, mentors, developmental tools, and experiential learning opportunities. Each fellow builds a pathway for defining their purpose in the Academy. Thus the skills developed through this program serve as a launching pad for exercising leadership in Collective Impact projects. The overall goal of the Academy is to accelerate the leadership development journey of emerging African American leaders. The program’s name is an honor paid to a trailblazing Minnesota civil rights pioneer.

Black Centered Design: A Black Oriented Approach to Improving Our Community: Our Black Centered Design approach consists of collab- orative initiatives to tackle our community’s most pressing challenges of  Public Safety, Housing, Edu- cation, Employment, Infrastructure and Healthcare. History dictates that we must act differently. Solu- tions must be centered and aligned with people who are living the reality of inequity. As positive change results in single communities, our model will radiate change outward to neighboring, contiguous and connected communities, setting the stage for lasting and  impactful change.  

Convenings, Gatherings & Forums that Connect Black Leaders. Our events encourage people from diverse backgrounds to share a role in improving the lives of African Americans. A neighborhood community gets lifted one by one. Our COVID-19 Black Minnesota virtual town hall, Black Life Amp- lified, is keeping everyone informed about the impacts of the public health crisis. We are also reshaping the narrative specific to African American lives, Black leadership, and the Black experience with our podcast: Black Leadership Re-Defined, heard weekly right here in our media platforms tab.