The Harvard Black Men’s Forum bestowed this honor on Jada this past Saturday!
As a part of its Celebration of Black Women program, the Harvard Black Men’s Forum (BMF) has selected acclaimed actress Jada Pinkett Smith as Woman of the Year, an honor bestowed upon someone who exemplifies the qualities of leadership, achievement, and commitment to community service. Pinkett Smith will be honored in Leverett House Dining Hall on Saturday.
Pinkett Smith (along with her husband, noted actor Will Smith) founded the Village School in Los Angeles, which presently has more than 60 gifted elementary school students from underresourced backgrounds. Through the Will and Jada Pinkett Smith Foundation she has contributed to many worthy causes, including the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund and the Harvard Foundation’s Japan earthquake/tsunami blanket project. She is well-known for her starring role in the TV series “Hawthorne,” as well as film roles in “The Matrix,” “The Nutty Professor,” and “Ali,” and a voice role in the animated film “Madagascar.”
This year marks BMF’s 18th annual Celebration of Black Women, the group’s largest annual event dedicated to honoring the contributions that black women have made to the Harvard community and to society as a whole. Past honorees include Phylicia Rashad, Debbie Allen, Sonja Sohn, and Carla Harris.
