As the nation turns its attention to the Super Bowl, a different kind of gathering is stepping onto one of the world’s biggest stages, one focused not on competition but on connection.
On Feb. 6, Robert Kraft’s Blue Square Alliance Against Hate will host the Unity Summit, a partnership with UNCF, Hillel International and the NFL, bringing Black and Jewish student leaders together with professional athletes for candid conversations about allyship combating hate. According to the organization, Gen Z is three times more likely to witness antisemitism but nearly twice as likely to say it is not a problem.
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The day will open with student-led dialogue on shared experiences and the rise of racism and antisemitism on college campuses. Later, a fireside chat moderated by Hannah Storm will feature Emmanuel Acho, the New York Times best-selling author and former NFL linebacker, alongside Kayvon Thibodeaux, a defensive lineman for the New York Giants.
“Sports have a unique ability to be a unifying power to bring people together, break down barriers and inspire real change,” Kraft told USA TODAY. “The summit brings student leaders and athletes into the same room, giving them the chance to listen to one another, learn from one another and lead together. Our goal is that they take those conversations back to their campuses, their locker rooms and their hometowns.”
For students like Jake Golden, a senior at Emory University, the summit builds on years of “Unity Dinners” hosted in Atlanta.
Messages of encouragement and affirmations are on the Unity Wall at the entrance to the Super Bowl 60 Fan Experience. Feb. 4, 2026.
“I really appreciated how open everyone was to hear about people’s perspectives, ask questions, be empathetic, really understand people’s upbringings,” Golden said.
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Golden and peers from Emory, Morehouse College and Spelman College are already creating a Black and Jewish Leaders of Tomorrow Forum to continue the work year-round.
For Sara Scherlinder, a junior sociology and anthropology major at Spelman, these conversations are personal. As a Black and Jewish woman, she sees Unity Dinners as “visibility and hope.”
“The only way to move forward and to help our future is to listen, educate and celebrate one another, which is exactly what these community beginners are doing,” she said. Scherlinder has attended five Unity events.
The summit arrives in San Francisco at the NFL’s biggest week, a moment UNCF president and CEO Dr. Michael L. Lomax says elevates its message.
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“This marks our second Unity Summit at the Super Bowl, a moment when the eyes of the world are focused on more than a game, but on the values we choose to lift up,” he said.
In the South Lobby at the Super Bowl 60 Experience is a Unity Wall for fans to take photos with.
Bryan West is a music reporter at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Super Bowl Unity Summit aims to build bridges across communities
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