ATLANTA — The Atlanta Dream has announced a new initiative aimed at forgiving $10 million in debt for families in the city. This program, which will benefit over 3,500 recipients, was unveiled on the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech. The team is collaborating with Cash App and ForgiveCo to implement this debt relief effort.

The debts being forgiven range from $500 to $80,000. Morgan Shaw Parker, the president and chief operating officer of the Atlanta Dream, emphasized the importance of this initiative. "One of the things that we think is incredibly important is we believe that sport is a catalyst for social change and so we really lean into the community that serves us," she said in an interview.

Shaw Parker explained that the program is not solely focused on debt relief but also aims to promote financial literacy among the recipients. "This is a long-term process for us," she noted. "What I hope it accomplishes for the families is to allow them to say, 'hey, I do have a dream and I'm that much closer to achieving it.'" She added that the financial relief could help families in various ways, such as purchasing a car, making a down payment on a house, or considering college.

To select the families who would benefit from the program, the Dream worked with partners to identify specific neighborhoods in Atlanta that are most affected by high debt-to-income ratios. Shaw Parker mentioned that the initiative began around the team's arena in College Park and extended into Dr. King's former neighborhood, which is one of the lowest-income areas in the country.

The selected families were informed on Thursday if they were chosen for the program. Shaw Parker described the initiative as a transformative partnership that prioritizes community engagement. "These are transformative sport partnerships that are not like traditional sport partnerships where you are really focusing not on community as the last thing you seek to do together, but as the first thing you seek to do together," she said.

In addition to the debt relief announcement, Shaw Parker addressed the potential for a WNBA lockout if a new deal is not reached by the end of October between the league and the Women's National Basketball Players Association. "I think everybody on all sides is really looking to achieve what is necessary for the players, for the league growth," she stated. She compared the WNBA's current situation to that of other major leagues in their early years, expressing optimism for future growth and change.