My Brother's Keeper Alliance (MBK)

"Boys and young men of color (BYMOC) are the target population for the My Brother’s Keeper initiative. This includes males of color from the early childhood years up to 24 years of age."

This initiative from the USA will be interesting to all those working with marginalised youth in Australia.

In America, boys and men of colour (BYMOC) have for decades suffered disadvantage. Nearly 50% of all American males under 18 are BYMOC, and in a bid to improve the life outcomes for them the focus for My Brother's Keeper Alliance is to improve early childhood education, keep black and Latino boys out of jail and instead in college or training, and preparing them for success in the workplace.

Everyone should have the same opportunities to succeed regardless of who they are and where they are from, and MBK seeks to address these opportunity gaps faced by BYMOC to ensure that everyone can reach their full potential. A long list of corporate donors committed $80 million "in-kind and financial donations" to start up the alliance.

My Brother's Keeper Alliance is an independent, non-profit organisation aiming to mobilise the private sector to help boys and young men of colour, distribute grants and work with local communities to assist them in communities where there is a lack of educational and employment opportunities for young men of colour.

My Brother’s Keeper focuses on six milestones:

• Entering school ready to learn
• Reading at grade level by third grade
• Graduating from high school ready for college and career
• Completing post-secondary education or training
• Successfully entering the work force
• Reducing violence and providing a second chance