In a robust demonstration of how investing in Black women creates a pipeline of changemakers, Grammy Award-winning artist Megan Thee Stallion’s Pete & Thomas Basis will honor Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium founder LaTosha Brown alongside 13-year-old psychological well being advocate Mila Henry at its inaugural gala.
Going down July 16, 2025, at Gotham Corridor in New York Metropolis, the black-tie affair might be hosted by actress Taraji P. Henson, that includes performances by Muni Lengthy and leisure by DJ D-Good. The gala will profit initiatives centered on training, housing, and well being and wellness in underserved communities.
The pairing represents a exceptional full-circle second: Brown’s group awarded Henry a grant via the #BlackGirlJoyChallenge that she used to start out her personal nonprofit, MH Bins, serving Black women’ psychological well being wants.
ABOUT THE HONOREES
LaTosha Brown: A Power for Transformation
LaTosha Brown based Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium in 2017 with a robust perception: “If you happen to change the lifetime of a Black woman, you alter the world.” Now being acknowledged for her transformative work empowering Black women and girls throughout the South, Brown is a dynamic drive igniting social change worldwide. As co-founder of Black Voters Matter Fund and founding father of Fact Speaks Innovation Basis, she stands as a visionary thought chief, establishment builder, and cultural activist.
“LaTosha embodies the spirit of radical risk that the Pete & Thomas Basis seeks to have fun,” mentioned Chanceé Lundy, Government Director of Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium. “Her imaginative and prescient has channeled over $10.2 million to greater than 220 Black women-led organizations.”
Brown’s Southern roots and international imaginative and prescient have allowed her to amplify voices throughout the U.S. and over 30 nations. She has suggested numerous social justice organizations, served as a fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics, and co-designed the Energy, Innovation, and Management government training program at Harvard to spice up Southern girls leaders’ effectiveness. Featured in main media shops, she continues to advocate for social justice, political empowerment, and cultural transformation.
Mila Henry: From Pleasure Grant Recipient to Psychological Well being Advocate
Mila Henry, founding father of MH Bins, represents the highly effective impression of investing in younger Black women’ desires. At simply 12 years outdated, Mila obtained a grant via the Black Woman Pleasure Problem, a collaboration between the Pete & Thomas Basis and Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium, and used the funding to launch her personal non-profit group, MH Bins, in January 2024.
MH Bins supplies psychological well being care packages full of journals, self-care necessities, affirmations, and wellness instruments particularly designed for Black women. Mila’s personal journey with psychological well being as a biracial Black woman impressed her to create this supportive community-led initiative that addresses the important hole in psychological well being assets for Black women, who are sometimes underrepresented in psychological well being conversations.
“Mila exemplifies why we spend money on Black women’ desires,” mentioned Brown. “Once we present assets and imagine of their visions, we witness the creation of options that tackle actual group wants with innovation and coronary heart, led by the very individuals who perceive these wants most deeply.”
Now 13, she continues to develop MH Bins’ attain, working to make sure that psychological well being assist is various, inclusive, and accessible to all Black women. Her work demonstrates how the #BlackGirlJoyChallenge can and has impressed actual options and empowered younger voices to drive significant change of their communities.
A Highly effective Partnership with Function
Based in 2022 in honor of Megan Thee Stallion’s late dad and mom, the Pete & Thomas Basis has been a key associate within the #BlackGirlJoyChallenge, offering funding for 100 women via its collaboration with Southern Black Ladies. “LaTosha and Mila symbolize two generations of visionaries,” mentioned Lundy. “This gala honors the facility of partnership, and what’s doable after we fund the way forward for Black women at each stage of their management journey.”
Since its inception, the Southern Black Ladies #BlackGirlJoyChallenge has supported over 800 women with modern group tasks; from arts and entrepreneurship to preventing interval poverty and selling wellness.
About Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium
Based in 2017 by visionary LaTosha Brown and anchors Felecia Fortunate (Black Belt Group Basis), Alice Jenkins (Fund for Southern Communities), and Margo Miller (Appalachian Group Fund), the Southern Black Ladies and Ladies’s Consortium is a philanthropic group devoted to funding Black women and girls throughout the Southern United States. Working in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia, Southern Black Ladies employs participatory grantmaking approaches that heart Black women’ voices whereas supporting racial justice, training, well being and wellness, financial mobility, and management growth.