Ron Bell (right), founder of Dunk the Vote, hands out copies of the organization’s “Black Book” at the Boston Office of Black Male Advancement Empowerment Summit, March 7. The book explains civil rights broadly, as well as specifically in reference to areas like voting access, immigration and racial profiling. PHOTO: AVERY BLEICHFELD/BAY STATE BANNER
Avery Bleichfeld
Thirty-three years ago, as the city of Boston grappled with a wave of racial profiling in the wake of the murder of Carol Stuart, Ron Bell, founder of Dunk the Vote, was busy handing out pamphlets about civil rights and driving while Black.
Now, Bell is returning to those roots, passing out a civil rights booklet that Dunk the Vote developed called “The Black Book: Know Your Rights.”
The booklet comes amid a changing landscape of rhetoric on the national political stage, as the administration of President Donald Trump takes aim at things like diversity, equity and inclusion. That shift and community concerns have raised fears that Bell is aiming to help address with the effort.
“There’s a great deal of fear — not just in the immigrant community, but also a great deal of fear, which has been going on for years, in the Black community,” Bell said.
The booklet is also intended to close gaps in civil rights knowledge.