Release information courtesy of HUBison.com
WASHINGTON — American University men's basketball will travel to crosstown rival Howard on Halloween, Tuesday, Oct. 31, in a charity exhibition game inside Burr Gymnasium to help raise awareness of gun violence and honor the legacy of the late Blake Bozeman. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. with ticket proceeds benefiting the Far Southeast Family Strengthening Collaborative, a local charitable organization dedicated to building sustainable and mutually beneficial community relationships with the goal of giving every child and family an opportunity to achieve their maximum potential and lead a productive life.
Gun violence is ripping apart communities across the country. As the most civic-minded basketball program in the country, Bison players and staff could not sit idly by as this scourge of violence surrounds them.
At the start of the school year, Howard's own campus community was rocked by a violent attack outside Towers Plaza at the start of move-in week, a time when students should be celebrating the start of a new school year. Beyond Georgia Avenue, there is no part of the city left untouched. Washington, D.C. currently has 233 homicides and is on track for the highest homicide rate since the 1980's.
Additionally, the extended HBCU family has seen the most joyous and festive occasion, Homecoming, stripped away from them due to gun violence. Morgan State. Jackson State. Bowie State. Tuskegee. Let's hope the list stops there.
"As a basketball coach, people think my life revolves around the game. And it does. My players and coaches will tell you that I am an intense competitor who holds everyone in my program to our university's standards of "excellence in truth & service" said Howard head coach Kenneth Blakeney. "However, when I wake up every morning my first thought isn't on what I can do make our team better today but what can I do to ensure the beautiful Black men and women in our program, and my family, make it home safely tonight. As Black people in America, the biggest victory we can have every day is our survival - making it home in one piece."
Bozeman was fatally shot at a DC nightclub on Sept. 24, 2023. A husband and father of three, Blake was a family man and constantly giving back to his community. His organization, the Pivot Group, focused on diversifying career opportunities for amateur athletes, through career development, mentorship, and community fundraising.
"Blake was the son of a good friend of mine and esteemed coach Todd Bozeman," said American head coach Duane Simpkins. "It truly pains me to know that the murder of Blake will leave a void in the Bozeman family that will never be replaced. We as a community need to unite to find solutions to solve this social dilemma. We owe it to families like the Bozeman's and all the families affected by this epidemic."
His murder hit especially close to the Bison program as the connections between the Bozeman and Bison families run deep. Blake was an AAU teammate of assistant coach Tyler Thornton where they were coached by Blake's father, Todd. Todd is the all-time winningest coach at Morgan State (where he coached his son) and was the color commentator for multiple Bison games last season. Inspired by both the player and man that Blake Bozeman was, the team felt compelled to honor his life and legacy through organizing this event.
"I call our program #TheDreamFactory because I believe anything is possible when you step foot on this campus," says Coach Blakeney. "Unfortunately, it has become all too possible in this current time for the shattered dreams of our Black brothers and sisters to be splattered across the nation at the hands of guns."
"Halloween is a festive night, and we chose this date because while we wanted to honor the memories of all lost to gun violence, we also wanted to provide the community with a safe, fun, and unifying evening in the midst of so much sadness," Blakeney added.
Event Details:
- Date: Tuesday, October 31, 2023
- Time: 7:00 pm
- Location: Burr Gymnasium
- Address: 601 Girard Street NW, Washington, DC 20059
- Ticket Price: $20 for the public, $10 for students
- Dress Code: Orange
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