We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Pauly Jackson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Pauly below.
Pauly, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
What does plugging Power to Purpose look like? Well, we believe last year showed us the cheat code for political organizing, community investment and mutual aid. 2020 was traumatic, exhausting and surreal, but one real inspiring thing did go down.
2020 summer delivered us one of the most awesome and unprecedented displays of racial solidarity in our lifetime. It was also a dramatic moment in American labor history. We’re talking about the NBA’s work stoppage during their playoff bubble in Orlando. It all began with the grisly Kenosha police shooting of Jacob Blake — an entrepreneur, a father from Evanston, IL…and my brother. Protests in his name broke out around the world. Jake survived the attack, to an entire nation’s relief, and he emerged as a symbol of strength in the contemporary civil rights movement.
Everything was already changing earlier that year, when I saw my son protesting for his existence in the wake of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s murders. My lil Kayson, a wide-eyed two-year-old boy, gripping a hand-made sign and chanting that his life mattered. To hear your own kid, barely old enough to speak, yell “MY LIFE MATTERS.” It was like he was pleading to the world that he deserved to live. My son was showing me that it was time to enter the fight. Little did I know, my family and I were going to be tested right away, under the brightest lights imaginable.
When everything happened in Kenosha, the Milwaukee Bucks were inspired by Jacob and chose to withhold their labor: they refused to play their scheduled game against the Orlando Magic. It left a massive ecosystem hanging — millions of dollars in advertising, broadcasting and everything else — and it showed the juice that these young Black men were working with. The Bucks sent a clear message, contacting the Wisconsin Attorney General and the state’s lieutenant governor from their locker room. “They just wanted to know what they could do,” Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said. “They were very interested in a call to action. They wanted something tangible that they could do in the short and long term.”
Other teams joined in solidarity and sat out their games, creating a “wildcat strike” and leveraging their platform to highlight the country’s racial reckoning. It was an incredible moment. Players clearly wanted to make a change in their communities and use their resources to fight injustice. In organizing TOGETHER, they were able to show serious power. A few months later, this formula was put down and produced even bigger wins: the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream organized against their own team co-owner, Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler, using their platform and their time to promote the campaign of her opponent, Rev. Raphael Warnock. Loeffler, a Trump sycophant and the wealthiest senator in U.S. history, was a heavily-favored incumbent in a traditionally red state. The women of the WNBA were ready for a damn fight, and they WON it.
Edifye asks…what if we maintain that energy EVERY DAY? What if we use the platform of professional athletes, followed by millions of fans and revered in the cities they represent, to elevate our neighborhood coalitions, our grassroots fighters and the local folks in power? Last year’s actions timed well with the 2020 election cycle. But we are going to exercise this political power ALL the time, regardless of what year it is or who’s holding office. A person’s city council rep and district attorney affect their day-to-day life far more than their president or senator does. The rotten inequities of our current system were festering under both Republicans AND Democrats. We can’t afford to go half-way anymore. Edifye is going all in.
Players know WHY they care, and WHY they’re in this fight. We’re identifying their WHY and connecting them to resources to do something about it. We’ll identify WHERE platformed individuals can really move the needle in their respective cities, and build out projects with those cities’ coalitions.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Edifye is a Black-led 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that connects professional athletes and their teams to the local issues and mutual aid projects that they care about. It’s building off the spirit of the 2020 NBA/WNBA labor stoppages that supported our brother, Jacob Blake, while he was fighting for his life from a traumatic police shooting. At Edifye, we do two things: find why each player is in this fight for equity and reparation, then connect them with the resources to act on it. Those in charge want to see pro athletes “SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE.” We’ll work together to tailor their message and turn up the speakers.
EDIFYE’S THREE PILLARS OF PROGRAMMING
Brake Light Block Parties (preventing police violence and poverty for the FUTURE)
Goal – to check and change brake lights, free of charge, and reduce the harm of police traffic stops for vulnerable drivers. Engage community members and activate athletes in their metro neighborhoods.
How – certified technicians service cars roadside. While drivers wait, we distribute free groceries to all families in need. We also host a block party element with a cookout, family fun, voter registration and area-specific civic engagement. This saves lives and promotes neighborly solidarity.
Chicago Undiscovered Showcase (getting kids into college immediately for the PRESENT)
Goal – to create a path to debt-free higher education for high school senior basketball players without a college commitment and youth that fall through the cracks.
How – rent out a gym, identify and register participants & invite hundreds of NCAA/NAIA coaches and scouts. The kids compete in front of schools with available scholarships, and young men go from an uncertain future to a college degree.
3. Urban Agriculture Program (re-educate and correct for policies from the PAST)
Goal – to sustainably grow our own produce, in areas typically underserved or considered “food deserts,” and offer both career and mentorship opportunities through urban farming.
How – as stewards to a plot of land in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood, while working in conjunction with native community members , we aim to create immerse educational/work opportunities for Chicago’s POC youth. Growth will go to a Team Edifye community fridge, offering free, healthier options to neighbors in need.
OTHER EVENTS
Winter Warmth Clothing Drive across Chicago supporting mutual aid groups: Pilsen Food Pantry, People Over Profit
Gifts Beyond The Gates program with Opportunities Peoples Justice Leaders in Cincinnati, Ohio providing holiday gifts, warm meals, video visitations and love for families affected by incarceration & poverty.
Digital Teach-Ins on Zoom or Instagram Live, pairing athletes with informed leaders in spaces like criminal justice, involuntary servitude, mental wellness and mentorship.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Pauly quit his job and locked in on community amid the uprisings of 2020. After marching with his son for Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, Pauly felt galvanized; while lifting the family up for his brother Jake, managing an international crisis and handling media during the #JusticeForJacobBlake movement, he knew he was ALL IN for reparative justice. Pauly launched Edifye with his family and friends, working toward a future where no family experiences what his did.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Our story is one of a real life situation that affected the masses in a major way. We saw the solidarity in such a vulnerable time for the world and did our best to develop a tangible method of change during such a trying time. While discussing and organizing we have seen great reception to our ideas and programs. 1st hand experience in many marginalized sectors can create a trust tunnell and direct perspective that is trusted and respected.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.edifye.org/
- Instagram: @Teamedifye
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Edifye2020/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/team-edifye/
- Twitter: @teamedifye
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TeamEdifye
- Other: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/teamedifye
Image Credits
Robert Gill, Michael Martinez, Sophia Gomez, Eric Kelly