Stories for May 24th to June 7th 2021

August 31, 2021 by Chris

All Stories

States Cutting off Expanding Unemployment (Vox)
Sean Combs Teams Up With Salesforce To Launch SHOP CIRCULATE, An All-In-One Digital Marketplace For Black-Owned Businesses (PRNewswire)
TPCO Invests In First Black Women-Owned Cannabis Speakeasy In The U.S. (Forbes)
Why Black Americans Need Black-Owned Banks (Time)
Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Build Black Wealth and Narrow the Racial Wealth Gap (The White House). Policy announcement from the White House.

Protest / Social Justice

10 Minutes with… Black Lives Matter (License Global)
Asheville’s Black Lives Matter protests: What’s changed a year later? (Citizen Times)

Coronavirus / Covid-19 / Paycheck Protection Program

Lawsuit keeps minority-owned businesses from getting pandemic financial relief (Wish TV)
How social identities are affecting post-Covid economic prospects (Consulting)
Black-owned businesses used internet lending sites more than other groups for PPP loans (Banking Dive). Fed Study is Here.

Jobs / Workers / Unemployment / Gig Economy

How Cuts to Unemployment Benefits Will Hurt Rural People (In These Times)
Black, Latino NC workers had to play ‘Russian Roulette’ during COVID. The toll was steep. (Charlotte Observer)
Gig workers to lose all unemployment benefits in 20 GOP states (CBS News)
Black and Hispanic women are still behind as jobs rebound. (New York Times)
Without enough child care, workers can’t get back to work (Philadelphia Inquirer)
States Cutting off Expanding Unemployment (Vox)
Hiring Picked Up in May but Lagged Behind Broader Recovery (Wall Street Journal)
First 3 African American firefighters in Newark honored (Yahoo News)
Wanted: Creative careers for Black and Brown New Yorkers (NY Daily News)

Inequality / Systemic Racism / Economic Justice / UBI

Business of Pride: Davin Clemons of Relationships Unleashed (Proud to be IP)
The search for balance among four Americas. Book Review of George Packer’s “Last Best Hope” (Washington Post) – Conservative
Racism Derails Black Men’s Health, Even as Education Levels Rise (Kaiser Health News) — Good and long.

Black Business

Black Business General / Interesting Businesses Stories

Black Businesses Matter (Forbes)
Why doesn’t Rochester have more Black-owned business startups? (Post Bulletin)

Black Business Specific

13-year-old entrepreneur supplies 400 notebooks to Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship (Trib Live). Kenz N’ Co is a business run by the 13-year old Ryleigh Mackenzie.
Kahawa 1893: The First Black Woman-Owned Coffee Brand in Trader Joe’s (GlobalNewsWire) – Press release
Sean Combs Teams Up With Salesforce To Launch SHOP CIRCULATE, An All-In-One Digital Marketplace For Black-Owned Businesses (PRNewswire) – Press release with good links.
The Importance of Black-owned Vintage Stores | Business (Pennsylvania News Today)

Black Economics

Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Build Black Wealth and Narrow the Racial Wealth Gap (The White House). An official report from the administration. Lot’s of good research and links.
Exclusionary Zoning: Its Effect on Racial Discrimination in the Housing Market (The White House) – Good research and links. Another very difficult problem that may be beyond our abilities as a country.
Sadie Alexander: Bucknell professor publishes book on first Black American economics Ph.D. (Daily Item)
For Black America, Bitcoin is Hope, Bitcoin is Change (Bitcoin Magazine)

Co-Ops / Employee Owned / Cooperative Economics (UJamaa)

One big strategy to reduce racial wealth inequality: employee ownership (Technically)
Bridging The Energy Efficiency Divide (Forbes) – Roanoke Electric Cooperative pays for members home energy upgrades.

General Business

Big Business / Business Strategy

Tech companies made big pledges to fight racism last year — here’s how they’re doing so far (CNBC) – Wow, pretty comprehensive.
Spending on diverse suppliers has increased more than 50%, says Bain report (Consulting.US). Supplier Diversity: How to Overcome Four Key Obstacles (Bain & Company)
How companies can celebrate Juneteenth (HR Dive)
This volunteer-led platform is tracking nearly $50 billion in corporate promises (Morning Brew)
Corporate board diversity census showed Black men lost ground (Aljazeera)
Racially Diverse CFOs Are in High Demand, but Challenges Persist (Wall Street Journal)
You Can Still Count The Number Of Black CEOs On One Hand (NPR). There are still just 5 Black CEOs within Fortune 500 companies.
Big business emerges as major US community investor – but ‘smaller dollar’ also playing a growing role (Pioneers Post)
One year after #BlackoutTuesday, what have companies really done for racial justice? (Vox)
PayPal Deposits $135 Million in Financial Institutions Serving Black and Underserved Communities as Part of $535 Million Commitment to Advance Racial Equity (Yahoo Finance)

Discrimination / Racism

Auditors find racial disparities in King County contracts (Bellevue Reporter)
Racial Discrimination Lawsuit filed Against Terlato Wine Group (Wine Business) – Same stuff; different day. Terlato Wine Group
For LGBTQ employees of color, sexual orientation is the biggest source of discrimination in the workplace (USA Today)
How does age discrimination affect the economy? (Marketplace). Age discrimination hits twice for black workers.
First study in 30 years to document whether minorities are getting their fair share of CT contracts (Danbury News Times)
Racial discrimination has cost American economy trillions. Tulsa, massacres just a start. (USA Today)
Not just Tulsa: Racist mobs were ‘widespread and a constant concern’ 100 years Ago (USA Today)
AlaBev, AKA Birmington Beverage Company, settles EEOC suit claiming racial bias (AP) — The chair of the agency, Charlotte Burrows, said the case illustrated “the destructive and demoralizing impact race discrimination can have on employees when they are denied employment opportunities based on their race.”

Real Estate / Housing / Segregation

Black homeownership: Low in California, even lower nationally (Silicon Valley)

Reparations / Affirmative Action / Diversity / Inclusion

What Happened When Evanston Became America’s First City to Promise Reparations (Bloomberg)
Steve Rodgers from Harvard Business School, suggests how white Americans can help fix racial wealth disparity (Chicago Sun-Times) – Problems are caused giant wealth gap. White people can donate to HBCUs, buy from Black businesses and support reparations.
Racial Justice and diversity in business require leadership (USA Today)
The huge diversity issue hiding in companies’ forced arbitration agreements (CNBC) – Interesting. Arbitration is less diverse than the court system.
Businesses with racial equity achieve 58% higher revenues (Personnel Today)
After George Floyd was killed, retailers pledged to put Black-owned brands on shelves. Here’s how it’s going (CNBC)
Four ways the US can pay reparations for slavery that aren’t direct cash payments (Business Insider). Good way to start thinking about equality (reparations). There is also “10 Solution to fix the racial wealth gap” from 2019.
Industries and Update On Retailers’ ’15 Percent Pledge’ (NPR)
How Can You Start Shifting Your Business to Be Actively Anti-Racist? (Entrepreneur)
How the Columbus Urban League hopes to boost the earning power and wealth of Black Women (Columbus Business First)
Repairing America (AZ Central) — Exploring Fight for Reparations, Racial Justice Across the Country
After a decade of being othered, here’s why this publicist started an agency for ‘misfits’ (Digiday)

Categories and Industries

Beauty / Fashion / Retail

How One Black-Owned Brand’s Handbag Became a Pandemic Hit (Washingtonian)
More major retailers are carrying Black-owned beauty brands (CBS News)
How Fashion Influencer Mamissa Mboob, AKA The Color Me Mam, is influencing women to wear more color (Digital Journal)

Sports / Media / Entertainment

General Mills, Nestle Among 20 Big Advertisers Pledging to Spend More on Black-Owned Media (Variety)
Black media owners remain skeptical despite investment pledges (Marketing Brew)
The pandemic sparked a Black cycling movement in South L.A. — and a new Business (Los Angeles Times)
IndyCar courts Black fans, drivers in its push to diversify (Indianapolis Business Journal) – Via AP
Directors should honor African Americans by hiring Black Americans to play them (LA Times)

Alcohol / Cannabis / Gambling

Legislators, law enforcement focused on black market marijuana and rural Concerns (Nondoc)
The brewing industry is facing a social reckoning. Now Black brewers are making craft beer more inclusive. (Business Insider)
Illinois Senator Lightford moves to create more cannabis dispensary licenses for minority applicants (Illinois Senate Democrats)
Colorado wrestles with increasing minority cannabis ownership (The Denver Channel)
A Black whiskey entrepreneur will help bankroll others like her (Philadelphia Tribune)
TPCO Invests In First Black Women-Owned Cannabis Speakeasy In The U.S. (Forbes)
How This New Food and Wine Festival Will Put the Spotlight on Black Chefs (Robb Report)
UK cannabis campaigners take note: in the US, change came from below (The Guardian)
How Restaurants Can Promote a More Diverse and Inclusive Wine Industry (FSR Magazine)
Association of African-American Vintners is here.
Rhode Island Coalition Pushes Most Equitable Legal Cannabis Regulations Yet (The Intercept)

Food / Restaurants

As part of goal to build Black generational wealth, SOUL Street starts Black Owned Farmers Market (Frederick News Post)
Diageo launches DEI initiative to boost Black community in spirits industry (Marketing Dive)
A legacy of empowerment: Gipson Grocery in Dallas looks to expand its key role in the Black community (Dallas News)

Finance / Investing / Venture Capital

Where Do Black Millennials Stand in the Wealth Game? (Ebony)
Black-owned banks are booming, and they’re pouring money back into their communities(CNN) – Disappointing. No specifics on any actual specific community investment. No discussion of community mortgage, real estate or business loans. No discussion of geography or customers they serve. They could have at least pulled some CRA data.
One United Bank’s Community Reinvestment Act filing is here.
How Waka Flocka Is Using NFTs To Amplify The Voices Of Black Artists (Forbes). Artists are using NTFs as a form of investment.
Why Black Americans Need Black-Owned Banks (Time)
Black, Latinx and female entrepreneurs are still ignored by most venture capitalists (LA Times)
Calling For Diversity In Financial Service (Wilmington Biz)

Real Estate / Finance / Development / Segregation

The housing market is booming but remains deeply unequal (Washington Post). Talks about discrimination within appraisals.
How housing discrimination and white flight segregated America (Economist)

Technology / Apps / Innovation

TikTok Announces New Funding and Training Initiatives to Provide Support for Black-Owned Businesses (Social Media Today)
App Focuses On Racial Wealth Disparities By Boosting Credit Scores—And Home Ownership (Forbes). The app, My Home Pathway, helps those master financial literacy and increase credit scores.
The funding gap for Black founders of social apps (Axios) – Interesting read.
Meet 30 Black Founded Startups Selected By Google For Their New $2 Million (£1.5 Million) Black Founders Fund (Forbes) – What businesses are Non-US Blacks starting ? Google gave money to 30 of them.
Why A U.K.-Based Organization Has Launched An A.I. And Blockchain Accelerator For Black Founders (Forbes)
Ice Cube and Anthony Anderson endorse “Follow Me For Equity” social media investing app. (Black Unicorn Factory)

Science / Math / Statistics / STEM

Criminal Justice / Police / Corrections / Re-entry / Rehabilitation

A public health intervention for violence across the Americas (The Hill)

Cities / Urban Planning / Local Government

Building Back Severed Communities (American Prospect)
Charleston, Johns Island undergoing huge demographic shift among Blacks, Whites (Charleston Post & Courier) – Whites are moving back into Charleston and taking over the Black suburb of Johns Island.
The Highway That Sparked the Demise of an Iconic Black Street in New Orleans (Smithsonian)

Politics / Government / State and Local

Biden embraces symbolism, but substance on some issues proves more difficult (Washington Post)
Her mother told her to take an economics class at Harvard. Now Cecilia Rouse is a history-making economic adviser to President Biden (Boston Globe)
Senate confirms Kristen Clarke as first Black woman to lead DOJ civil rights division (CNN)
Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Build Black Wealth and Narrow the Racial Wealth Gap (The White House). An official report from the administration. Lot’s of good research and links.
Biden announces bold new plan to fight the racial wealth gap (The Hill)
Remarks by President Biden Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre (White House)
To Accelerate Our Economic Recovery, Look to the Arts (Governing)
Biden’s $6 trillion budget proposal would rebuild America’s social safety net (Vox)

Law / Legal / Non-profits / Philanthropy

As ‘Anti-Riot’ Laws Pass, Legal Challenges Grow (Law 360)
Courts are challenging the Biden Administration’s prioritization of women and minorities for restaurant relief grants (Nation’s Restaurant News)
Uber, DoorDash settle Arizona cases over waived delivery fees for Black-owned Businesses (CNET)
Amid Push for Inclusion, Law Firms Face Pressure to Make Racial Progress: “Everyone Has to Be Part of the Effort” (Hollywood Reporter) – Another business opportunity created by Black entertainment.
Meet LaMonica Love, a 40 Under 40 honoree who launched a law firm, a startup and more (Houston Business Journal)

Education / Healthcare

Prominent Atlanta businesses seeks to give 25K Black men free life insurance (Fox 5 Atlanta)
The Economics Of Early Childhood: ‘You’re There For The Kids…Not For The Money’ (LAist) — Even across overall low wages, there are disparities.
Louisiana Legislature approves Black history courses for TOPS qualification (The Advocate)
The 7 best scholarships for Black college students (Bankrate)
Tom Hanks says schools should teach the Tulsa Race Massacre and stop ‘whitewashing’ curriculums (Market Watch)
Why it may be hard to close the racial wealth gap without forgiving student debt (CNBC)
Opinion: The City’s Engine of Economic Mobility Needs a Kickstart (Bklyner)

Farming / Agriculture / Food Production

Black-owned vineyard and farm credits community for helping business thrive during pandemic (WRAL)
John Deere Starts New Initiative To Help Black Farmers Succeed (The Shadow League)
Seed Money: Black entrepreneurs hope pandemic gardening boom will grow healthier eating (Colorado Newsline)
USDA starts rollout of debt relief for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers (AG Week) – What !!!

People, Careers and All Other

Career / Professions / Entrepreneurship / Businesses You Can Start

Business leaders can fuel the next generation of Black innovators and entrepreneurs. Here’s what it will take (CNN)
Black Female Entrepreneurs Are Launching More Businesses Than Ever: Here’s What They Need To Help Them Mature (Forbes)
Start-ups in Black communities strongest nationwide amid entrepreneurship spike (Washington Post)
Kamalanomics: Vice President Harris Outlines Her Vision Of Inclusive Entrepreneurship (Forbes). A conversation with the Vice President that is a part of Forbes 50 under 50 series.
Entrepreneurship boomed in these predominantly Black neighborhoods during Pandemic (CBS News)
U.S. Department of State Appoints Howard Alumnus Gharun Lacy to Lead Cyber and Technology Security Efforts (Howard University)

People / Motivation / Leadership / Success Stories / Ideas

Founder Of 1863 Ventures, Melissa Bradley, Is Helping Entrepreneurs Build Black-Owned Businesses (Forbes)
A Black-Owned Plant Shop Blooms In The Pandemic’s Wake (Wbur)
Covid-19 decimated Black women-owned businesses — Ayesha Curry wants to change that (NBC News)
How a Black-Owned Digital Boston Radio Station Launched, Survived, and Thrived during Lockdown (Boston Magazine)
KC’s only Black-owned book shop — forced to find a new home — hits crowdfunding goal in just a few days (Starland News)
The female CEOs on this year’s Fortune 500 just broke three all-time records (Fortune)
Meet Lauren Haller, a 40 Under 40 honoree who champions diversity at Pattern Energy and with her own ventures (Houston Business Journal)
Roy S. Johnson: The true legacy of Black Wall Street? I lived it; my father, a massacre witness, embodied it (AL)

Caribbean / Africa / International

Google shares its $2M Black Founders Fund among 30 European startups (Tech Crunch)
Dikembe Mutombo Leads $1 Billion Investment to Revamp Mining in the Congo, Build Electric Vehicle Supply Chain (Sport Techie)
Workplace racism ‘amplified’ for Black Canadians, entrepreneurs, new reports find (The Hill Times) – Canadian
Federation of African Canadian Economics (FACE) schedules Toronto and Quebec Roundtable to meet with local entrepreneurs and provide information about the $291.3 million Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund (Agility PR) – Press Release.

Travel / History

On these Black history walking tours, bring your imagination (CS Monitor)
An unprecedented push to save historic Black homes in Chicago (Chicago Business)
Documentary focuses in on longtime heart of Black community (Times-Enterprise)
How Protests Against the Jim Crow Credit Market Changed the Civil Rights Movement (Pro Market)
When Tulsa’s Black Wall Street Went Up in Flames, So Did Potential Inheritance (Wall Street Journal)
The Tulsa massacre wasn’t a ‘race riot’ — it was a pogrom (Forward)
Tulsa’s Greenwood neighborhood wasn’t America’s only Black Wall Street (Yahoo News)
A New Generation of Black Entrepreneurs Wants to Recapture Greenwood’s Past (Wall Street Journal) – Part of a larger series: Greenwood, 100 Years Later.
Black Wall Street was shattered 100 years ago. How the Tulsa race massacre was covered up and unearthed (CNBC)
Beyond Tulsa: The Historic Legacies and Overlooked Stories of America’s ‘Black Wall Streets’ (Time)
Meet Elmer Whiting, Jr., the first Black partner in the Big Eight (Accounting Today)

Conservative / Alternative

Thomas Sowell: The Soul of Black Conservativism (Wall Street Journal)

Opinion

In 2021, it is time. Joe: Biden’s plan to have more Black executives in boardrooms (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
America’s racial wealth gap is 400 years in the making (Dallas Morning News) focused and long Overdue (NY Daily News)
Critical race theory is under attack (The Hill)
On the Tulsa massacre anniversary, corporate America can’t forget the fight against racism (Fortune)
It was much more than Tulsa (The Washington Post)

Other

How American Icon Henry Ford Fostered Anti-Semitism (History) – Inside, Ford would hire Black workers and pay them close to White workers.

Stories for April 12th to 25th 2021

August 18, 2021 by Chris

We are absolutely overloaded with great stories this week: PPP, Black fintech, Janelle Jones, Retiring while Black and Black women in Financial Technology.

All Stories

Protest / Social Justice

The effects of Black Lives Matter protests (Vox) – Interesting data analysis
72 Black executives sign letter urging corporate America to stand against voter suppression (WBTV). Black Executives Call on Corporations to Fight Restrictive Voting Laws (NY Times)
A Call to Arms to Fight Voting Restrictions (New York Times) — More than 70 Black executives demanded that corporate America push back against laws they say limit voting access.

Coronavirus / Covid-19 / Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

Connecticut’s Uneven Recovery: Poor people are still suffering from economic downturn brought by COVID (CT Mirror) – Great, long article about all the issue related to covid recovery in Connecticut. Good details.
Data shows Black bankruptcies linked to Covid-19 (Upsolve)
The Pandemic Was Historically Bad for Working-Class Women (Bloomberg)
Rainer Avenue Businesses Face Challenges, Remain Resilient As COVID Struggles Continue (Seattle Medium)
7 Hard and Crucial Lessons of Covid-19 (Elemental)
Poor people are still suffering from economic downturn brought by COVID (CT Mirror)
The Right Way to Rebuild Cities for Post-Pandemic Work (Bloomberg)
Minority entrepreneurs struggled to get small-business relief loans (Philadelphia
Tribune)
Washington University study identifies groups most impacted in pandemic recession (KSDK) – Study is here.

Jobs / Workers / Unemployment / Gig Economy

The Fed Is Making Wall Street Forecasters Pay Attention to Black Unemployment (Bloomberg)
Unemployment Rate for Educated Black Workers Lagged in March (Bloomberg)
How Employees Can Check if Company BLM Promises Held True (Ad Week)
‘This Is A Disgrace’; In 25 Years, The Pay Gap Has Narrowed By Just 8 Cents (Insurance News)
Opinion: Everyone should have the retirement plan federal employees enjoy
(Washington Post)
Op-Ed: Employers’ diversity and equity efforts often overlook people with Disabilities (CNBC)
Ending the Tipped Minimum Wage Will Reduce Poverty and Inequality (Center for American Progress)

Black Business

Black Business General / Interesting Businesses Stories
3 Places to Find Funding For Your Business (Essence)
Black executives call out Barra as GM pushes to be ‘most inclusive’ company (The Detroit
News) – Black-owned media companies criticize General Motors Co. CEO Mary Barra (Detroit Free Press)
How a Black Female-Owned Subscription Box Service is Helping Young Girls Feel Loved Every Month (NBA)
Hennessy Is Investing $1M In Funding To Champion Black Entrepreneurs (Essence) – Hennessy aims to ensure more equitable landscape for black entrepreneurship.
Resources for Black-owned businesses (LA Standard)
New crowdfunding campaign aims to help Black-owned businesses, nonprofits (Click On)
Black-owned business development coverage has a wider return on investment
(Tampa Bay Business Journal)
JPMorgan Chase invests $3 million in UMD initiative to prevent small business Displacement (Yahoo News)
New Jersey announces $10M seed fund aimed at Black and Latinx founders (Tech
Crunch)
Charlotte NC seeks input on aid to Black Businesses (Q City Metro) – Link to survey is here.
Addressing Institutional and Systemic Barriers to Black Entrepreneurship: Building Black Owned Businesses (Inclusivity Project) – Northern California SBA
Fair Shot: Minority business owners advocate for greater share of state contracts
(Hartford Business)

Black Business Specific

No stories.

Big Business / Corporate

General Motors Vows to Send More Advertising Dollars to Black-Owned Media Companies (Wall Street Journal)
Black Media Execs Demand More Business From General Motors’ Multi-Billion Dollar Ad Budget (Ebony). Similar story as above, different perspective.

Discrimination

Discrimination in the insurance industry and at Met Life and (Insurance News Net) – Good, long article on discrimination in insurance. Lots of details.

Reparations / Affirmative Action / Diversity / Inclusion

Evanston’s grants to Black homeowners aren’t enough. But they are reparations. (Washington Post)
Reparations ‘definitely’ have merit and should be taken seriously, Atlanta Fed president says (Business Insider)
Evanston, Illinois’s First-In-The-Nation Reparations Program Draws Complicated Reactions (NPR)
Why Diversity of Staff and Thought Are Vital to Business Success (WWD)
#BuyDiverse talks to Congresswoman Robin Kelly of Illinois and Chicago MSDC Board
Chairman Mark Hands of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. (WGN)

Economics

Black Economics

The typical older Black millennial has 17 times less wealth than white peers, and student debt may be why (Business Insider)
The Money Gap Between Black and White Americans Is Wider Than Ever – Can Businesses Fix It? (MSN)

Gender Pay Gap Costs $78 Billion: For Black Moms, an Even More Disturbing Picture (LA Sentinel)
Black America Needs A ‘New Normal’: Equitable Credit Access To Build Economics
(Philadelphia Tribune) – Charlene Crowell
Beyond Pandemic’s Upheaval, a Racial Wealth Gap Endures (New York Times)
Detroit’s Black Wealth Tax (City Journal)
A reckoning for Baltimore banks, asking them to invest billions more to help Black and Latino businesses and families (Baltimore Sun)

Straight up Econ / The economy

Fears of a Too Hot Economy Ignore Racial Inequality (Bloomberg)

General Business

Big Business / Corporate / Business Strategy

Target to spend $2 billion with Black-owned businesses, pledges to add products from 500 companies by 2025 (USA Today)
Target Beyond Measure Website mentioned in the Article.
Target Plans to Spend Over $2B With Black-Owned Businesses by 2025 (Sourcing
Journal)
Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs And JPMorgan Urge Shareholders To Vote Against Racial Equity Oversight (Yahoo Finance)
Companies Can’t Stay on the Political Sidelines (NY Times) – Huh? Sure they can.
Companies gave more than $50 million to state lawmakers who backed voting overhaul bills (CBS News) – Prominent companies urged by Black business leaders to reverse course of previous donation spending.
Black Corporate Leaders Form Alliance To Nurture Next Generation Of Executives (Essence) — The Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA) will help to champion diversity at the corporate leadership level.

Real Estate / Housing / Segregation

Here’s who bought the $8 million Four Seasons penthouse (Baltimore Business Journal) — Eddie Brown, Owner of Brown Capital Management, one of the largest Black owned investment companies.

Industry Stories, News and Ideas

Yelp to expand data on Asian-owned businesses as consumers prioritize diversity (Yahoo Finance)
Sticking to it: WKU student’s Black-owned, woman-owned business offers diversity to hobbyists (WKU Herald)
Startup Spotlight: Diversity, equity, inclusion becoming a higher priority at VC firms but progress is slow (WRAL Tech Wire)
America’s first Black woman billionaire is promoting diversity in the arts as well as the c-suite (CNN)
John Hope Bryant vows to create one million Black entrepreneurs, businesses with $130 million fund with Shopify (The Atlanta Voice)
Goldman, Starbucks, Wharton Form Group to Erase Black Wealth Gap (Bloomberg)
Why the nation’s first reparations program for Black residents is tied to homeownership (Marketplace)

Sports / Media / Entertainment

P&G increases opportunities for Black creators across advertising, film and TV (Marketing Dive)

Marketing / Advertising / Sales / Consumer Behavior

A year of exhaustion has weakened consumers’ resolve to make ethical buying Choices (Fortune)
Meet The Entrepreneur Who Is Bridging The Racial Divide In Soccer (Forbes)
Major League Baseball Has Not Gone Woke (New York Magazine)
P&G invests in Black pop culture to boost equity (Cincinnati Business Courier) –
P&G seeks to increase Black voices in advertising, film and television

Alcohol / Marijuana / CBD / Gambling

Black-owned distilleries are breaking barriers that once surrounded the Kentucky bourbon industry (Philadelphia Tribune)
Virginia 16th State To Legalize Recreational Pot, Latest To Emphasize ‘Social Equity’ (NPR)
The Highest Crop Advocates for Full Legalization of Cannabis (EIN)
Two new wine clubs give Sacramento made promises to Black entrepreneurs. Keep them before halting cannabis permits (Sacramento Bee)
Zoning bans, just one obstacle for Black-owned cannabis businesses (NJ Spotlight)
Black entrepreneurs say proposal to freeze cannabis permits for part of Sacramento will hurt equity progress (ABC 10)
‘Black people drink beer, too’: Charlotte breweries pushing for more diversity in the bottle (Washington Post)
Did Marijuana Legalization In MA Put Pot Dealers Out Of Business? (Patch) –
Selling cannabis has been legal in Massachusetts for more than two years, but most sales still happen on the black market.
Seeing green: How recreational marijuana could create a billion-dollar business (PIX)
Social justice fuels the fight for legal pot (Rochester City) and craft beer (WCNC)
NY Legalizes Pot: Will That Squash The State’s Black Market? (Forbes)

Food / Restaurants / Bars / Hospitality

Tanya Taylor named new general counsel at Radisson (Minneapolis Star Tribune) —
Hotel veteran sees brand growth as key, looks to diversify ranks of owners.

Beauty / Fashion / Retail

‘I did not copy her dress’: Designer responds after being accused of stealing design from Black-owned business (Yahoo News)
Fashion And Beauty Brands Pledged To Support Black Influencers. So How Are They Doing? (Huffpost)
Wilmington, Delaware entrepreneur creates app to support Black-owned Businesses (6abc)
Support Black businesses through social media during pandemic (Charlotte Post)
Master P, Lil Romeo, & Rouses Partner Up to Open Grocery Store in Senior Living Facility in New Orleans (River Beats)

Technology / Apps / Innovation

Mother creates Just Us mobile app to help protect Black drivers (Good Morning America). More specifically to protect Black drivers during police stops.
Black Owned AI Messaging Company Raises $36M In Series B Round (Essence) – Technology company uses AI and content to improve consumer communication online.

Finance / Investing / Venture Capital

Banks, J&J Ask Shareholders to Vote Against Racial Audits (Bloomberg)
Best Grants For Minorities (Investopedia) – Minority funding for business, education, arts, and more
8 funding sources for BIPOC entrepreneurs (Mic)
Analysis: Diversity data debate at stock exchanges is about the role of finance (Crain’s Cleveland)
Momentum builds to rein in predatory payday lending (St. Louis American) – By Charlene Crowell: Center for Responsible Lending
CFPB Finds Four Out Of Five Payday Loans Are Rolled Over Or Renewed (CFPB)
In financial advertising, payday loan companies target Blacks and Latino while banks ignore them. (LA Times)
CommunityWorks’ Tammie Hoy Hawkins Helps The Underserved Access Financial Services (Greenvillew News)

Real Estate / Finance / Development / Housing / Segregation

Black developers call for reckoning in real estate (Washington Post)
Black Millennials Were Major Contributors To 2020’s Home Buying Surge (Essence)
Post-COVID equity must include closing racial gaps in housing (The Hill)

Construction / Jobs / Discrimination

Creating Solutions to Racism Problem in Construction Industry (National Law Review) — The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that Blacks comprise just six percent of the workforce in construction, a number that has been relatively unchanged for 25 years
Equal playing field: How Miles-McClellan is helping grow ‘a competitor’ in Sessley
Construction (Columbus Business First) — Joint has the capacity to shake up minority-contracting in Columbus’ construction industry in the future.

Criminal Justice / Police / Corrections / Re-entry

As Chester County’s new Sheriff, Fredda Maddox hopes to connect the county’s criminal justice system with the people who are most impacted by it. (Philadelphia Sun)

Cities / Urban Planning / Local Government

Biden’s New Infrastructure Might Begin To Dismantle Racist Urban Planning (NPR)
Detroit man crowdfunding to open city’s only Black-owned grocery store (FOX 2)
First Look: The Gathering Spot Is a Private Club for the Black Community (Washingtonian) — $200 a month; $2000 a year to join
The Right Way to Rebuild Cities for Post-Pandemic Work (Bloomberg)

Politics / Government / State and Local

Biden’s infrastructure plan includes more than $300 billion for small businesses, manufacturers, and entrepreneurs (Business Insider)
Biden wants to use infrastructure plan to right racial injustices (KSU Sentinel)
Biden aims to narrow racial inequities as part of his infrastructure and jobs
Programs (CNBC)
One of America’s first Black CEOs slams ‘bone-headed’ Georgia law as blatant attempt to suppress Black vote (CNN)
Companies are condemning Georgia’s new restrictive voting law. Their criticism came too late. (Vox)

Law / Legal / Non-profits / Philanthropy / Non-Profit

Bar Exams May Soon Be Easier to Pass, as States Eye Changes (Bloomberg Law) – States look at changes to promote diversity
Data shows Black bankruptcies linked to Covid-19 (Upsolve)

Education / Healthcare

New Census Data Show Homeschooling Tripled During the Pandemic—And One Key Group is Driving the Surge (Foundation for Economic Education). Homeschooling rate for Black students increased to 16.1%, higher than the population of Black students in K-12 public schools.
For some Black students, discrimination outweighed integration’s benefits (Phys Org)
Study: Black Adults Who Attended Racially Balanced Schools Were Worse Off
(Diverse Education) — Black adults who attended racially balanced mixed-race schools ended up finishing fewer years of school and were less likely to graduate than others who attended overwhelmingly white schools or predominantly Black schools
UK journalism alum creates scholarship for Black students (Lane Report)
Feds cancel $1.6 billion in capital debt for historically Black colleges (The Charlotte Post)

Farming / Agriculture / Food Production

Tracy McCurty Has Worked a Long Time to See Historic Wrongs Righted for Black Farmers (Civil Eats) – Good, long article about Black farmers and the legal system. She is director of Black Belt Justice Center. She previously worked at the Land Loss Prevention Project (Landloss.org) which publishes “Ten-ways to save your land” book and distributes it for free.
Black farmers have always faced injustice. Will the American Rescue Plan help? (newsday)

Business Strategy

Making Farm-Fresh Deliveries (Triangle Business Journal) – Fresh farm food delivered. Another business idea.

People Careers and All Other

Career / Professions / Entrepreneurship / Businesses You Can Start

Why are there so few Black engineers in tech? (Yahoo News)
5 inspirational black female UK entrepreneurs (Real Business)
A New Way to Teach Cultural Competency by Having Fun While Showcasing Unique African Talents (PR Newswire) – Motherland Cultural Connections
Operation HOPE Launches Minority Small Business Index in Collaboration with SurveyMonkey (Global News Wire) – Press Release. A partnership of operation hope and survey monkey
Operation HOPE|SurveyMonkey: HOPE Minority small business index (Survey Monkey) – Here are the March 31st results. Unfortunately, the final index calculation does not work, so there is no way to make a monthly comparison.
Some interesting results: 75% of responses came from females. 100% had some college and 60% had a college degree or more. None of the responses came from people with high school education or less than high school.
Access to capital as cited by 46% of people when asked “what us needed to start, reinvent or grow your business” ?
- 69% are counting on the business to be their main source of income.
- 90% say there is NOT enough support for small minority businesses in this country.
- 90% say they expect government regulation to have a no effect or a positive effect on their business.

People / Motivation / Leadership / Success Stories / Ideas

Brandon Blackwood on Activism, Accessories, and Building a Black-Owned Brand (LOfficel) – This is pretty nice.
Interview: Meet the Founders of Black-Owned Boutique Dossier New York (Atwood Magazine)
A lot of ideas (and some already-strong programs) for Black and Latino Entrepreneurs (ROI)
Youngest Female Trader In Wall Street’s History Is a 26-Year-Old Black Woman Who Is on Path to Becoming ‘The New Face of Finance’ (Atlanta Black Star)
Mielle Organics Raises More Than $100 Million in Funding (Adweek)

All Other

Caribbean / Africa / International

Government’s race report ignores ‘brutal evidence’ of economic inequality, says charity (The Independent)
5 inspirational black female UK entrepreneurs (Real Business)
Boris Johnson’s racial disparities commission ‘to recommend against using BAME term’ (MSN) – Blanket term may potentially mask the lived experiences of individual groups.
Tribe Network is looking to be Canada’s Innovation Hub for BIPOC Entrepreneurs (Betakit)

Travel / History

Why Republican efforts to ban the 1619 Project from classrooms are so misguided (Washington Post)
How W.H. Houser, Born an Enslaved Person, Constructed a New Charlotte (Charlotte Magazine)
Economics of the Great Migration (University of Delaware) — During the Great Migration, between 1910 and 1970, six million Black Americans journeyed from Southern states to points north and west in the United States with the goal of finding a better life for themselves and their families.
Fire in Little Africa Album to Be Released amid 100th Anniversary of 1921 Tulsa
Race Massacre (People)
Claiborne Overpass Construction That Obliterated Historic Black Business District
May Get Restitution in Biden’s Infrastructure Plan (Big Easy)

Opinion

Opinion: On anniversary of MLK’s death, justice in Boston awaits (Boston Business
Journal)
The Fate of Biden’s Agenda Hangs in the Balance (New York Times)
Let’s be real: it’s bigger than temporary solidarity (Bowdoin Orient) — a lot of
those who like to portray themselves as allies use the Black Lives Matter
movement as a mere trend.
Op-Ed: What Manhattan Beach’s racist land grab really meant (Los Angeles Times)

Other

Malaco Records: An inside look at ‘The Last Soul Company’ (Daily Journal) – Tupelo, MS

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We are absolutely overloaded with great stories this week: PPP, Black fintech, Janelle Jones, Retiring while Black and Black women in Financial Technology.

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