Dunk
the Vote
Dunk the Vote is a non-partisan organization that focuses on voter registration, education and turnout. The mission of Dunk the Vote is to support and enhance accountable self-empowerment within and for Black communities.
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Engage
Participate & Motivate
The Black Book: Know Your Rights
This Booklet is a resource. It will help anyone who carries it become familiar with their rights, to recognize when they are being violated, and to have the information they need to act and protect themselves.
Guides to Local Government
Residents must be engaged to address issues that affect them – many are literally life or death, such as the extreme wealth gap, violence, gentrification and displacement, declining rates of home ownership in the Black community, and many others.
Click below for our Guides to Local Government publications.
Dear Friends,
This past week, we marked Martin Luther King Jr. Day – a moment to reflect not only on the moral force of the Civil Rights Movement, but on where Dr. King directed his work in its final years. Near the end of his life, he focused squarely on economic justice, arguing through the Poor People’s Campaign and Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? that political rights without economic footing were fragile. In a moment when long-standing assumptions about opportunity and stability are breaking down, that insight feels especially relevant.
For more than 30 years, Dunk the Vote has focused on civic engagement, civil rights, voter protection, and social justice. That mission remains unchanged. But this moment calls for a broader approach.
In 2026, Dunk the Vote, working in partnership with the Real Talk Network, will place renewed emphasis on financial wellbeing, financial literacy, and economic participation as core civic work, convening targeted workshops, small-group conversations, and individualized sessions that connect community members with trusted financial and business expertise, reinforced through ongoing Real Talk conversations.
To do this well, we must first build the infrastructure that makes it durable: staffing, coordination, partnerships, and follow-through.
We are reaching out to a small group of long-time supporters to help raise the initial kernel of funding needed to launch this work with clarity and momentum. Early support will shape the year ahead and position this effort to grow into a lasting economic driver aligned with civic justice in Boston and beyond.
Your support at this moment helps lay the groundwork for what comes next.
Will you donate now to kickstart our financial wellbeing campaign?
With Gratitude,
Ron Bell,
Dunk the Vote Founding Director
Connecting Boston’s Underheard Voices
The Real Talk Network builds the connective tissue that strengthens communities, informs better systems, and grows shared power.
Watch Real Talk Network videos at the links below
DTV News & Blog
NPR: Boston-based effort reminds Black people of rights when confronted by law enforcement
July 4, 20254:27 PM ETHeard on All Things ConsideredFrom GBH NewsBy Paul Singer With sweeping ICE arrests taking place, some Black residents worry the color of their skin could make them susceptible, and they're taking steps to prevent negative encounters. AILSA...
NEWSONE: Community Activists Create ‘Black Book’ To Empower Black Residents Amid Immigration Crackdown
Richard Claytor and Ron Bell, two dedicated community leaders from Boston, Massachusetts, have developed a crucial resource to help Black residents and other communities of color navigate increasing immigration enforcement actions under the Trump administration and...
Video: FIVE YEARS LATER: Reflecting on the Legacy of George Floyd
In May 2020, the death of George Floyd became a symbol of police brutality and triggered thousands of protests across the country and throughout the world. In Massachusetts, these events galvanized community action and helped accelerate statewide police reform and...
Murder in Boston review: Exploring the legacy of a racist rush to judgment
HBO’s true-crime docuseries chronicles the case of Charles Stuart, who killed his wife and blamed it on a Black man.
By Kristen Baldwin
Published on November 27, 2023 11:27AM EST
Social Media
Partnerships
Education
“Ron Bell and Dunk the Vote, Inc. are at the forefront of a dynamic civic movement… Ron Bell is a vsionary leader who continually takes initiative to create new vehicles to enhance the development of young people… He is building a civic engagement and voter program that could be a model for the nation.”
Hubie E. Jones
Dean Emeritus, Boston University School of Social Work
“As a young African American man, I did not understand that opting out of the system meant opting out of the the power to change the system”
DTV Leadership Intitute Gradutate
Zachary Roscoe
“I choose to give my flowers today to honor a man who never seeks to be seen or heard but is one powerful shaker and baker in our community Mr. Ron Bell!! I have known Ron for many years. I first met him in the capacity of being his employee at the Tobin Community Center in Mission Hill. He gave opportunities for growth to so many many youth through his position there and helped to change the course of so many individuals and families. If that was not enough he never said no to opportunities for his employees to reach out to families in Mission Hill and surrounding areas. Always encouraging, always supportive and most of all always leading by example. He taught us how important the power of voting is and began to reach out to others in the community, the city and the state through his Dunk the Vote Initiative. I could never figure out how he found the time and energy to make a difference e in so many areas. And still today he has not slowed down one bit. Minister, radio and t.v. personality, voter registration and education and helping folks any chance he gets. The most impressive thing to me is that Ron never rings his own bell. He just shows up and gets it done. He is an amazing human being and a more amazing friend!”
Denise Williams
Video: FIVE YEARS LATER: Reflecting on the Legacy of George Floyd
In May 2020, the death of George Floyd became a symbol of police brutality and triggered thousands of protests across the country and throughout the world. In Massachusetts, these events galvanized community action and helped accelerate statewide police reform and...
5th Anniversary Rally for George and Justice, by Courageous Conversations – May 22, 2025
Despite the harsh wind and rain of a rare spring nor’easter, over 50 people gathered at Parkway Methodist Church Thursday evening to mark the fifthanniversary of George Floyd’s death.
Black neighborhoods brace for aggressive policing with ‘know your rights’ guides
Ron Bell, founder of the civic engagement organization Dunk the Vote, shows off the new "know your rights" handbook his organization has begun distributing in Boston's predominantly Black neighborhoods. PHOTO: GBH NewsFor Richard Claytor, watching migrants being...
Milton gathering honors 5th anniversary of George Floyd’s death
MILTON — Despite the harsh wind and rain of a rare spring nor’easter, over 50 people gathered at Parkway Methodist Church Thursday evening to mark the fifth anniversary of George Floyd’s death. In a small hall adjacent to the sanctuary, activists, community and...
Five years after the murder of George Floyd, local activists say progress has stalled
Hodan Hashi was 21 years old when George Floyd was murdered on May 25, 2020. She was about to become an activist. “It just felt like we should say something, our voices do matter,” Hashi said on an episode of GBH News Rooted this week. “And that was, I think, the...
Local nonprofit launches civil rights education effort with ‘The Black Book’
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...
‘Hidden Heroes & Sheroes’ 8 from Codman Sq. and Four Corners feted
Neighborhood Leadership awardee Flora Bannis, of Flora’s Child Care on Brent Street, was surprised by a contingent of her students during her award presentation. Seth Daniel photosWith a packed house in the Great Hall at Codman Square, the annual Hidden Heroes &...
The Codman Square Neighborhood Council has awarded Ron Bell the 2024 Millennium Award for community impact
Ron Bell Honored The Codman Square Neighborhood Council has awarded Ron Bell the 2024 Millennium Award for community impact. I cannot think of anyone who deserves to be honored and recognized more yet never seeks attention for self. Ron Bell received TEN citations...
MURDER IN BOSTON WINS EMMY AWARD!
The Stuart Tragedy in Mission Hill Among the night's winners was the three-part docuseries “Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage, Reckoning,” which took home the award for outstanding crime and justice documentary, in a category that also included “Wanted: The Escape of...
A Walk Down the Block: Tracing the history of busing through Boston’s streets | GBH
By Paris Alston WGBH Updated September 24, 2024 Let’s take a walk down the block. Today, we’re starting on Beacon Hill, where tales of Paul Revere and other famous Americans abound. But we’re exploring a history that’s more hidden. This is a walking tour of the...
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Mission
Voting is a public health emergency. COVID has both made it more difficult and more important than ever to vote. The proposed intensive, aggressive strategy is based on the Civic Engagement Leadership Lab (Cell) model that utilizes grassroots organizing concepts and leadership development combined with well-established voter engagement strategy.
It is important to understand the long history of racism and voter suppression that continues to plague Black and Latinx communities in Massachusetts, which contributes to low voter turnout. Add COVID, as people of color are three times more likely to die from COVID, and we truly have a public health emergency.
The need we are addressing is one of ensuring that people are able to exercise their vote safely, in local, state, and national elections by promoting voter participation and protecting the public health of communities.
