The Magic Johnson Foundation will celebrate 20 years of community empowerment with Point Forward Day, a national day of awareness and action.
On Nov. 7, 1991, Earvin “Magic” Johnson announced to the world that he’d acquired HIV and would be retiring from professional basketball. He subsequently launched the foundation, and has been a seminal figure in HIV/AIDS awareness since.
Now, 20 years to the date of the announcement, a press conference will be held Nov. 7 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to launch the anniversary campaign. Events will also be held in Oakland, Sacramento, Harlem, Miami, Cleveland, Suburban Washington, D.C., Columbia, S.C. and Bennettsville, S.C.
“It is time for the Magic Johnson Foundation to communicate the impact we have had in urban communities across the U.S.,” Amelia Williamson, interim president of the Magic Johnson Foundation, said in a statement. “Point Forward Day is about getting involved and giving back like Magic has done. It is time for all of us to stop spectating and start doing! Through our continued work in educational empowerment, it is our hope to cyclically cultivate, inspire and help to achieve self-sufficiency in underserved communities.”
Among those expected to join the campaign are basketball stars Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash as well as music stars Ludacris and Faith Evans, among others.