Welcome
It is with great pleasure that I present to you the Harvard Black Men's Forum. We are an organization that dedicates itself to the principles of Brotherhood, Manhood and Fidelity, and it is through these principles that we have grown to become one of Harvard’s most active student organizations over the past several years.

But who are we? We can be defined in so many different ways, and as a result, we elude basic categorization. While we are an organization that holds many social events on Harvard’s campus we are not a Fraternity. And while we do hold weekly discussion meetings, we are much more than a discussion group. And even while we have many members who participate in mentorship and service to communities outside of Cambridge, we would not call ourselves solely a community service organization. In my mind the definition is actually much simpler. We are a group of men who are continually expanding our collective vision of how we can positively change the world around us.

For some of us, that change is realized through work with the BMF publication REMIX, which we plan to distribute to schools across the country in the coming year. For others, this vision is fulfilled through our mentorship program, the David Walker Program and the relationship that we have developed with Brothers Seeking Academic Excellence, a group of black highschool students from the Buckingham Browne and Nichols school. For others still, this vision is pursued through the planning and execution of events such as our Celebration of Black Women, which annually celebrates black Harvard women as well as black women in the larger society for their contributions to the global human community. These are only a few of the many ways that we as BMF members work to improve the world around us.

From international relations theory to music theory; economics to neurobiology, there is a great diversity in the interests and strengths of our membership. As a result, we have collaborated with dozens of other student organizations, working on a range of projects that include rape and sexual assault prevention and awareness, the global AIDS epidemic and global redistributive justice. With each passing year, we grow stronger, aided by the help of new members who bring with them new energy and ideas. The sky is truly our limit.

And in saying this, it is important to communicate to you our vision as an organization. We, the members of the Black Men’s Forum, seek to do what we can to change the tide of the growing apathy that exists among the black men and women of the world —especially those of us with the privilege to obtain higher education—regarding economic, social, and racial inequality. The BMF, in a lot of ways, is the realization that we as college students have the power to be the change that we want to see, and this change must not be delayed.

I encourage you to get to know our organization and programs, which you will find more information on in the other parts of this mailing and via our website. I also encourage you to give us feedback. The most beautiful and important aspect of what the BMF stands for is the realization that there are no battles that are fought and won alone. It is only through the help of many hands, hearts and ideas that the change our generation wants to see can actually be realized.

Sincerely,

Chas Hamilton
President Emeritus, Harvard Black Men’s Forum, 2006-2007