ATLANTA, GA—- Black Lives Matter Board Members and nationally renowned leaders Cicley Gay and D’Zhane Parker and traveled to West Africa between May 24-June 2, 2025, to host a Borehole Commissioning in Ashaiman, and other humanitarian outreach and community engagement events with the people of Ghana and Niger. The trip’s overall focus centered around advancing impoverished communities, collaboration with the people, and inspired unity for all of West Africa.
With an emphasis on social activism, Parker and Gay’s travel was in deep partnership with West-African led organizations, in AfriKicks and the Afro-Arab Group. AfriKicks, founded by Oumarou Idrissa, focuses on collecting and donating shoes to the people of Africa. The Afro-Arab Group is a multifaceted company that operates the Afro-Arab Arena, a sports complex dedicated to the Spartans Football Club in Ghana. The Afro-Arab Group hosted the charity soccer tournaments for this partnership at the Afro-Arab Arena.
Black Lives Matter is delivering over 5,000 pairs of shoes, 40,000 toys, and $150,000 worth of clothes—while building three clean water wells in communities across Niger and Ghana, including one in Ashaiman.
The trip also included high-level meetings with government officials, conferences and cultural outings. Activities ranged from the commissioning for the Borehole Project, hosting charity soccer tournaments, visiting orphanages, social engagement activities with village schools’ children, and more.
D’Zhane Parker and Cicley Gay are the two forces behind this partnership, and both bring upon extensive backgrounds in philanthropy, activism and direct service with them.
