Stories for May 24th to June 7th 2021

Top Stories

  • When Tulsa’s Black Wall Street Went Up in Flames, So Did Potential Inheritance (Wall Street Journal)
  • Racial discrimination has cost American economy trillions. Tulsa, massacres just a start. (USA Today)
  • Wanted: Creative careers for Black and Brown New Yorkers (NY Daily News)
  • Tech companies made big pledges to fight racism last year — here’s how they’re doing so far (CNBC) – Wow, pretty comprehensive.
  • How Restaurants Can Promote a More Diverse and Inclusive Wine Industry (FSR Magazine). Association of African-American Vintners is here.
  • USDA starts rollout of debt relief for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers (AG Week) – What !!!
  • 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.
  • A legacy of empowerment: Gipson Grocery in Dallas looks to expand its key role in the Black community (Dallas News)
  • Thomas Sowell: The Soul of Black Conservativism (Wall Street Journal)
  • Black-owned banks are booming, and they’re pouring money back into their communities(CNN) – Disappointing. No specifics on any actual specific community investment like home mortgages, commercial real estate or business loans nor customer geography. They could have at least pulled some CRA data. One United Bank’s Community Reinvestment Act filing is here.
  • 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)
  • Biden’s $6 trillion budget proposal would rebuild America’s social safety net (Vox)
  • Sean Combs Teams Up With Salesforce To Launch SHOP CIRCULATE, An All-In-One Digital Marketplace For Black-Owned Businesses (PRNewswire)
  • Racism Derails Black Men’s Health, Even as Education Levels Rise (Kaiser Health News) — Good and long. Racism and isolation cause health problems.

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

Opinion

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

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

Top Stories

  • Surviving the Pandemic: Black-Owned Businesses and the Paycheck Protection Program (BGA) – Hey, this is some really good real life reporting on four Black businesses in Chicago. They discuss the small amount of money they received from PPP.
  • This Top Biden Economist, Janelle Jones, Has A Plan: Create Jobs, Address Inequality, Ignore Trolls (KNBA) – Janelle Jones is the first Black woman to ever serve as chief economist at the Labor Department.
  • Retiring While Black (Consumer Reports)
  • These 8 Black women are using technology to combat financial inequities (Fortune)
  • Many younger Black Americans started investing in the stock market during the pandemic (Marketplace). 30% of Black investors under 40 got into the market for the first time in 2020.
  • Fed Is Taking on a Racist Legacy in the Field of Economics (Bloomberg)
  • School Integration Was Not Always a Good Thing for Black Educational Attainment, Study Finds (The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education). 
  • In Silicon Valley, how one Black-owned transportation business, Mosaic Transportation, pivoted — and survived — during the COVID-19 pandemic (MarketWatch) – Business is just now reaching 20% of pre-pandemic levels.
  • Goldman Sachs employs just 49 Black people in top US jobs (CNN)
  • OIC of America to honor legacy of Rev. Leon H. Sullivan (Philadelphia Tribune)
  • Kansas City businesses haunted by legacy of redlining during the Pandemic (Center for Public Integrity) – PPP loans followed the same, old pattern of discrimination.
  • The poor pay proportionately higher taxes in many categories leading to a higher overall effective tax rate for a given level of income. Here is the famous and well-known study from Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Who Pay’s – A Distribution Analysis of who pays state and local taxes. If you have time, compare New Jersey and Texas.
  • A beach town seized a Black couple’s land in the 1920s. Now their family could get it back (The Guardian).
  • Black youth unemployment rate of 40% similar to time of Brixton riots, data shows (Guardian)

    Stories

Protest / Social Justice

  • Black Worker Centers: Building Workplace Power in the Communities (American Prospect)
  • Many younger Black Americans started investing in the stock market during the pandemic (Marketplace). 30% of Black investors under 40 got into the market for the first time in 2020.
  • Mastercard Continues Support for Black Women Entrepreneurs (NASDAQ)
  • How Black-Owned CBD Companies Like Brown Girl Jane Are Forming Communities Around Cannabis (Forbes)
  • Mother-Daughter Entrepreneur Duo Aims To Inspire Black Youth To Cultivate Generational Wealth (News One). 7-year old Anastasia Linkpon and her mother Adriane Mack Bouj Flea Market, selling slime and bath bombs.
  • Floyd Killing Forces U.S. Business to Examine Its Record on Race (Bloomberg)
  • After Chauvin verdict, business leaders speak out saying fight for racial justice must continue (CNBC)
  • Will Smith Movie Pulls Production Out of Georgia Over GOP Voting Law (Wall Street Journal)

Coronavirus / Covid-19 / Paycheck Protection Program

  • COVID-19 disproportionately affected minority businesses, entrepreneurs, Kenan Institute finds (WRAL Tech Wire)
  • Covid-19’s Personal Finance Toll On Older Entrepreneurs (Forbes)
  • Black business owners tell their PPP stories (Austin Weekly)
  • Black Businesses Matter, But Will They Get Fair Share Of COVID-19 Aid Money? (Black Press USA)
  • Surviving the Pandemic: Black-Owned Businesses and the Paycheck Protection Program (BGA) – Hey, this is some really good real life reporting on four Black businesses in Chicago. They discuss the small amount of money they received from PPP.
  • In Silicon Valley, how one Black-owned transportation business, Mosaic Transportation, pivoted — and survived — during the COVID-19 pandemic (MarketWatch) – Business is just now reaching 20% of pre-pandemic levels.
  • ‘We need at least one more check.’ The case for a fourth stimulus payment (CNBC)

Jobs / Workers / Unemployment / Gig Economy

  • Black Worker Centers: Building Workplace Power in the Communities (American Prospect)
  • What Amazon can learn from a bruising union victory in Alabama (Bloomberg)
  • Amazon workers have spoken — are progressives listening? (The Hill)
  • Schools look to build a diverse teaching workforce (Grand Rapids Business Journal) – Kalamazoo – 13% of teachers are Black versus 30% of students. Plenty of jobs if you want to teach.

Inequality / Systemic Racism / Economic Justice / UBI

  • Georgia’s voter suppression bill is an assault on our democracy (Brookings)
  • A Philanthropic Drive to Aid Black Women Is Gaining Momentum (US News)
  • Goldman Sachs employs just 49 Black people in top US jobs (CNN)
  • America’s Struggle to Overcome Racial Inequities (US News and World Report) – Good, long article summarizing the issues.
  • Taking a systems-thinking approach to anti-Black racism (Phys.org)

    Black Business

Black Business General / Interesting Businesses Stories

  • Three Best Friends Form First Black Owned Bread Company in Chicago. (Chicago Defender)
  • Business owners of color faced greater challenges getting loans amid pandemic, report finds — even when they were a low credit risk (CBS News)
  • Women of color drive new business growth during pandemic (Biz Women)
  • Omaha developer’s proposed KC apartments would displace Black-owned Businesses (Kansas City Business Journal)
  • Black CEOs uphold American democracy (Bay State Banner)
  • Louisiana and Maryland: Two U.S. States Among Many Reporting Racial Bias in COVID-19 Relief Efforts (Triple Pundit)
  • Racism and obesity are inextricably linked, says a Harvard doctor – and here’s how she thinks that can change (Boston) — The two most common forms of bias in the United States are race bias, which is by far the most common, followed by weight bias. Report finds more obstacles to starting a new business for people of color
  • (WWLP)
  • Small businesses are less hopeful about their ability to get funding (Yahoo News)
  • The Auburn family that owns half of Camp Hill’s empty units seeks to restore them one by one (Outlook)
  • Bookstore named after Harriet Tubman celebrates women authors, artists and Activists (Today)

Black Business Specific

  • Duke Energy Entrust New Minority Owned Charcuterie Company Graze-Full Eats with 25th Annual African American Network-Carolinas Scholarship Gala (PR Web)
  • Sweatpea Technology and mo’pweeze Bakery get $10,000 grants (nj.com)
  • Three Minority Business Owners Investing In Charlotte’s Historic West End Community (WCCB) – Charlotte. Rita’s water ice, pizza and a pharmacy.
  • In Silicon Valley, how one Black-owned transportation business, Mosaic Transportation, pivoted — and survived — during the COVID-19 pandemic (MarketWatch) – Business is just now reaching 20% of pre-pandemic levels.
  • Prosperity Market: Creating a sense of urgency to give Black farmers a platform (KCRW)

    Black Economics

Black Economics

  • Breaking Barriers: Economist Cecilia Rouse (Historian Speaks) – Black History Now. Profile of Cecilia Rouse, Chair of Council of Economic Advisors to the President
  • Digital Banking Platform for Black and Latinos Partnered with Mastercard (Yahoo Finance)
  • This Top Biden Economist, Janelle Jones, Has A Plan: Create Jobs, Address Inequality, Ignore Trolls (KNBA) – Janelle Jones is the first Black woman to ever serve as chief economist at the Labor Department.
  • Soul City: A Utopia For Black Capitalism (NPR)
  • These 8 Black women are using technology to combat financial inequities (Fortune)
  • Many younger Black Americans started investing in the stock market during the pandemic (Marketplace). 30% of Black investors under 40 got into the market for the first time in 2020.
  • Here’s How Millennial Wealth Stacks Up Against That Of Prior Generations (NPR). Black Americans’ progress is not being translated in terms of wealth.
  • Broadway Financial Completes Merger to Create Largest Black-Owned Bank in the US (Los Angeles Business Journal)
  • Fundraising Opportunities For Minorities And Women Of Color (Forbes)
  • Black entrepreneurs seek to close racial wealth gap (Business Day)
  • The student debt crisis is crushing Black Americans. Here’s how loan forgiveness could help (USA Today)
  • Black Americans Are Embracing Stocks and Bitcoin to Make Up for Stolen Time (Bloomberg)
  • Retiring While Black (Consumer Reports)
  • More than 20 local banks form unprecedented $100M fund for minority-owned Businesses (Philadelphia Business Journal)
  • Fed leaders agree: Economics has a race problem (Yahoo News)
  • Economists are ‘lazy’ when it comes to studying the effects of racism, says AFL-CIO chief economist (Market Watch)
  • Dr. Loretta Mester, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Highlights Racial Disparities in Economics in Department Guest Lecture (Swarthmore Phoenix)

Straight up Econ / The Economy

  • Economic dynamism thrives in America’s minority communities (Brookings Institute)
  • Analysis: A tale of two tapers: This time is different for a Fed focused on jobs (Reuters) – Fed appears to be paying attention to the Black unemployment rate.
  • The economy is improving — but the pandemic isn’t over yet (Vox)

    General Business

Big Business / Corporate / Business Strategy

  • Mastercard Continues Support For Black Women Entrepreneurs (NASDAQ)
  • BofA Looks to Link Up Bond Issuers With Minority-Run Banks (Bloomberg)
  • More Businesses Are Standing for Justice (New York Times)
  • An update on policy, corporate pledges to address systemic racism (Marketplace)
  • Corporate Activism: Why Big Business Is Taking A Stand In Partisan Politics (Wbur)
  • Brands Address Equity Gap for Black Business Owners and Entrepreneurs (Triple Pundit)
  • Target Pledges to Invest $2 Billion in Black-Owned Businesses by 2025. (Chicago Defender)
  • Big-business pushback against voting measures gains momentum (StarTribune)
  • How marketers can turn societal upheaval into better branding (New Hope)
  • How the corporate backlash to Georgia’s new voting law is shaping other fights around the country over access to the polls (Washington Post)
  • Amazon Pledges to Promote More Women, Black Employees (Bloomberg)
  • Wells Fargo invests unspecified amount in five Black owned banks (Post News Group)
  • Pfizer to Place 100 Young Minorities in New Fellowship Program (Bloomberg)

Discrimination

  • Black Electrical Worker Kyrin Taylor Says He Found Noose In His Workspace (CBS New York)
  • Kansas City businesses haunted by legacy of redlining during the Pandemic (Center for Public Integrity) – PPP loans followed the same, old pattern of discrimination.

Real Estate / Housing / Segregation

  • Black millennials increased African American homeownership in 2020, but the road ahead is ‘going to be a challenge,’ experts say (Yahoo) from Business Insider
  • Biden proposal includes first major focus on restructuring roadways that divided cities and cut off minority neighborhoods (Thomas Reuters Foundation News)
  • Black neighborhoods in Kansas hard hit by property tax sales (ABC News)
  • Kansas Center for Economic Growth: Kansans of Color Often Pay More Than Their Fair Share of Taxes (ITEP)
  • Anytime someone says the poor don’t pay taxes or or the rich pay the majority of taxes, here is the counter argument. The poor pay proportionately higher taxes in many categories leading to a higher overall effective tax rate for a given level of income.

    Here is the famous and well-known study from Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

    Who Pay’s – A Distribution Analysis of who pays state and local taxes

    If you have time, compare New Jersey and Texas.

Reparations / Affirmative Action / Diversity / Inclusion

  • In a year of reckoning, slavery reparations bill moves forward in the House (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
  • Reparations for US slave descendants gains momentum (Al Jazeera)
  • ABC News makes history with new president (The Ticker) – Kimberly Godwin is the first Black woman to lead a major broadcast network’s news division and the first Black woman and Black president to head ABC News.
  • Supplier Diversity Programs Are Failing Black-Owned Businesses (Harvard Business Review)
  • Baltimore City Council bills aim to hold contractors accountable, help minority firms compete (Baltimore Business Journal)
  • Leaders need to create brave space, not safe space, for diversity and inclusion Conversations (CNBC)
  • Fed Is Taking On a Racist Legacy in the Field of Economics (Bloomberg)
  • The field of economics has a racial-disparity problem, Fed leaders say, and that worries them (Chicago Sun-Times)
  • A beach town seized a Black couple’s land in the 1920s. Now their family could get it back (The Guardian).
  • Manhattan Beach Took Beachfront Land from a Black Family. L.A. County Has Voted to Give It Back (LA Magazine)
  • What It Actually Means to Pass Local ‘Reparations’ (Bloomberg)
  • It’s Not The Shark—It’s The Water: What Companies Misunderstand About DEI Data (Forbes)
  • Why more BAME women in boardrooms makes business sense (Consultancy)
  • Supporting BIPOC-owned Businesses Creates Greater Opportunity for All (Sahan Journal)
  • How This Founder Is Diversifying Fashion And Media With A Directory Of Vetted Black And Brown Creatives (Forbes)

    Industries and Categories

Sports / Media / Entertainment

  • Ryan Coogler says moving the filming of ‘Black Panther 2’ out of Georgia will affect small businesses (The Source). Coogler will find other ways to fight against the Georgia voter suppression law.
  • IHeartMedia’s Black Information Network Is Monetizing The Old-School Way: Sponsorships (Ad Exchanger)
  • The entertainment industry is one of the least diverse in the US (NY Times) — Hollywood’s Anti-Black Bias Costs It $10 Billion a Year. McKinsey study is here.

Alcohol / Marijuana / CBD / Gambling

  • Kentucky entrepreneurs aim to revolutionize the alcohol industry (Spectrum News 1) – Louisville, Kentucky
  • How Black-Owned CBD Companies Like Brown Girl Jane Are Forming Communities Around Cannabis (Forbes). This story is important for three reasons: One, there has to be a base of retail outlets to support a business like a distributorship. Two, they are backward integrating into a new market, and three, they operating in a market with few, if any, Black businesses.
  • Two Entrepreneurs Launch the Newest Black-Owned Organic Tequila Brand Called Los Negros (Black Business)
  • With a new round of dispensary licenses on the horizon, cannabis industry advocates turn attention to greater diversity (Columbus Dispatch)
  • Black farmers in South Africa protest ‘exclusion’ from marijuana licenses in favour of rich white businesses (Telegraph)
  • Black Wine Entrepreneurs Find Passion, Racism And Legacy In The Industry, Study Shows (Forbes)
  • Introducing Black Cannabis Magazine, a New Media Venture Launching on 420 (Cision)
  • A Cannabis Pro Tells Us Her Hopes for the Medical Marijuana Industry (Motley Fool) – featuring Dr. Chanda Macias
  • State cannabis reform is putting social justice front and center (Brookings)

Food / Restaurants

  • PepsiCo partners with Black and Hispanic food trucks to launch Mexican soda (Fortune)
  • Black chefs, business owners plan to start up their food experience in Toledo (WTOL)
  • RangeMe saw surge in searches for minority-owned, women-owned businesses in 2020 (Food Navigator)
  • Ghost Kitchens in Austin (Eater) – A look at delivery only restaurants in Austin featuring Cook’s Nook, a Black owned ghost kitchen. Plus a look at some national ghost kitchen brands.

Beauty / Fashion / Retail

  • ‘A Labor of Love’: These Black-Owned Skin Care Businesses Originated In Florida (WUFT)
  • Philanthropic Fashion: How Brands Are Showing People Are More Than Profit (WWD)
  • The Funk Boutique: Celebrating Successful Black Women, Sustainability, and Sneakers (Glow Up)
  • Black Enterprise, Tradition And Culture At The Bronner Bros. Hair Show (NPR)

Advertising / Marketing / Promotion / Consumer Behavior

  • Payday loan lender target Black and Hispanic consumers (Next City)
  • GM vows more money and more opportunity for Black-owned media (Free Press) — Detroit

Banking / Finance / Investing / Venture Capital

  • The Funding Gap: How To Address Two Huge Challenges Holding Back Minority-Owned Businesses (Forbes)
  • White-owned small businesses are twice as likely to get financing as Black- and Latino-owned firms, Fed survey finds (Business Insider)
  • Black Americans Are Embracing Stocks and Bitcoin to Make Up for Stolen Time (Bloomberg)
  • 2021 40 Under 40: Paul Campbell strives to bring equity to venture capital (Minneapolis Business Journal)
  • Four minority-owned banks reveal how they’re overcoming Wall Street’s ‘woeful’ lack of diversity to play a bigger role in investment banking right now (Business Insider)
  • White-owned small businesses are twice as likely to get financing as Black- and Latino-owned firms, Fed survey finds (Business Insider)
  • Black Lives Matter to Banks, But Not Banking. Large Bank Leaders Reject DEI Audits (Banker & Tradesman)
  • Banks resist racial-equity audits, but they shouldn’t (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Real Estate / Finance / Development / Segregation

  • Affordable Housing Forever (New York Times)
  • Black households face the highest home affordability hurdle (National Mortgage News)
  • A beach town seized a Black couple’s land in the 1920s. Now their family could get it back (The Guardian).
  • Manhattan Beach Took Beachfront Land from a Black Family. L.A. County Has Voted to Give It Back (LA Magazine)

Technology / Apps / Innovation

  • Ping-pong, free food, beer on tap — but no support for Black employees. Tech companies are rushing to create new policies, but are they willing to do the real work? (The Star)
  • Some Black tech founders in upstate New York say they feel left out of the growing opportunities that come to the area (Insider)
  • 8 charts that show the impact of race and gender on technology careers (World Economic Forum)
  • This startup wants to use AI to boost Black-owned businesses, and it’s raising money to do it. (Washington Business Journal)
  • These 8 Black women are using technology to combat financial inequities (Fortune)

Science / Math / Statistics / STEM

  • Criminal Justice / Police / Corrections / Re-entry
  • Boeing Invests $250K In Black-Owned Platform Designed To Combat Recidivism (Newsone)

Cities / Urban Planning / Local Government

  • ‘We Don’t Want To Look Like A Segregated Chicago’: Black Chamber Of Commerce
  • Looks Into North Side Opportunities (CBS Chicago)
  • Where Do We Go from Here? Four Part Series about the Syracuse Surge and Gentrification of the City of Syracuse (Urban Central NY) — Discusses issues around infrastructure construction.

Politics / Government / State and Local

  • Ray McGuire Wants to Show He’s Not Just the Wall Street Candidate (New York Times)
  • RAY MCGUIRE SAYS HIS ECONOMIC RECOVERY PLAN MAKES HIM BEST CANDIDATE FOR NEW YORK CITY MAYOR (Black Star News)
  • Bipartisan Senate proposal would grant $50 million to minority businesses (The Hill)
  • Black Panther sequel will not move filming from Georgia despite election law (WXIA 11 Alive)
  • 3 things Biden can do to enforce more equitable infrastructure (Fortune) – Use equality as part of determining which project get done. Involve business run by underrepresented groups. Make sure projects are reviewed by the community.

Taxes / Tax Policy

  • Kansas Center for Economic Growth: Kansans of Color Often Pay More Than Their Fair Share of Taxes (ITEP)
  • Anytime someone says the poor don’t pay taxes or the rich pay the majority of taxes, here is the counter argument. The poor pay proportionately higher taxes in many categories leading to a higher overall effective tax rate for a given level of income. Here is the famous and well-know study from Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Who Pay’s – A Distribution Analysis of who pays state and local taxes. If you have time, compare New Jersey and Texas.

Law / Legal / Non-profits / Philanthropy

HR / Personnel / Human Capital

  • To Build a Diverse Company for the Long Term, Develop Junior Talent (Harvard Business Review)
  • 7 steps for business leaders to take after the George Floyd case (HR Executive)

Education / Healthcare

  • Is there a Black doctor in the house? Why racial disparity in health care demands our attention now (Fortune). Lack of representation is the cause of race-based health disparities.
  • Why do Black Americans so often have worse health outcomes than other Americans? (Medical Economics) – More Black doctors and better health insurance would help.
  • Amid Racial Reckoning, A Push To Diversify College Investment Strategies (WGBH)
  • Stride, Inc. Changing the Face of American Education Through Partnership with National Association of Black Male Educators (Valdosta daily Times)
  • The biggest HBCUs in America (Chicago Tribune)
  • HBCUs: America’s pathway to next generation prosperity (Indianapolis Reporter) – And a link to the website featured in the article.
  • National Institute for Inclusive Competitiveness — Interesting. Not completely sure what they do.
  • School Integration Was Not Always a Good Thing for Black Educational Attainment, Study Finds (The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education). 
  • The fall and rise of C.S. Brown, the first high school for African Americans in North Carolina (EDNC)
  • Slow progress on race hampers business school diversity push (Financial Times) – Duh, how about the cost: $100,000 a year for basic accounting and finance. Where’s the ROI. B-School is for networking for the elite.

Farming / Agriculture / Food Production

  • These BIPOC-Owned Washington Farms Deliver CSA Boxes to Seattle (Seattle Met)
  • A New Crop: Portraits of Houston’s Black Urban Farmers (Texas Observer)
  • Gifts of Love Farm Is Helping BIPOC Farmers Thrive (NBC Connecticut)
  • Prosperity Market: Creating a sense of urgency to give Black farmers a platform (KCRW)

    People, Careers and All Other

Career / Professions / Entrepreneurship / Businesses You Can Start

  • Winston-Salem native starts his very own soda company (WFMY)

People / Motivation / Leadership / Success Stories / Ideas

  • Mother-Daughter Entrepreneur Duo Aims To Inspire Black Youth To Cultivate Generational Wealth (News One). 7-year old Anastasia Linkpon and her mother Adriane Mack BoujFleaMarket, selling slime and bath bombs.
  • How Jamie Foxx Is Paving The Way For The Next Generation Of Black Entrepreneurs (Forbes)
  • She Gamed Groupon to Make $300,000 Doing Massage Therapy. Now She Runs a
  • Million-Dollar Business Helping Black Spa Owners Do the Same. (Entrepreneur)
  • Orvin Kimbrough, chairman and CEO of Midwest BankCentre, write about his success (St. Louis American)

Good News

  • No good news this week. I love writing that.

Caribbean / Africa / International

  • Black youth unemployment rate of 40% similar to time of Brixton riots, data shows (Guardian)
  • Why more BAME women in boardrooms makes business sense (Consultancy UK)
  • Black Business Network – UK
  • Why some African Americans are moving to Africa (Black Economics UK)
  • Young black workers are three times as likely to be jobless as whites with more than 40 per cent unemployed – as high as time of Brixton riots (Daily Mail) – UK
  • The federal budget took steps toward racial justice — but activists say more must be done (CBC) – Canada. Here is the Canadian unemployment report for July 2020: Here. The Black Canadian unemployment rate was 16.8% which is similar to the US rate.

Travel / History

  • Deeds banning Blacks. Red-lined maps. What students dug up on Ridgewood’s housing legacy (North Jersey)
  • The earliest wealthy Black Americans (Afro) ‘Can’t lose our history’: Exhibit honors Black, immigrant legacy of Charleston street (The State)
  • Great Migration Creates Ties Between Mississippi, Illinois (US News)
  • The Long-Lasting Legacy of the Great Migration (Smithsonian) – Isabel Wilkerson
  • Remembering Black Wall Street (Afro-American)
  • OIC of America to honor legacy of Rev. Leon H. Sullivan (Philadelphia Tribune)

Classic / Old stories but good stories

  • The Long-Lasting Legacy of the Great Migration (Smithsonian) – Isabel Wilkerson

Conservative / Alternative

  • Black-owned businesses struggling at George Floyd Square, plead for help (NY Post)
  • An African-American professor on the case for black patriotism (NY Post)

Opinion

  • Racism destroyed a thriving neighborhood in my hometown. Now the fix is in sight (Kake)
  • How we close the racial wealth gap (AMNY)
  • Minnesota Is One of the Best Places to Live in America. Unless You’re Black. The state’s reputation belies some of the country’s largest racial disparities. (NY Times) – Lind of interesting; even progressive states contribute to racial problems.

Other

  • The American justice system finally worked. Does White America understand just how often it doesn’t? (Washington Post)
  • After Chauvin verdict, business leaders speak out saying fight for racial justice must continue (CNBC)
  • Black Business Warehouse – Companies can search for Black business partners in Washington and Oregon.
  • Link Black Business Network – UK
  • Link Urban One

Stories for March 29th to April 11th 2021

Just a heads up. We have consolidated two weeks of stories into one post.  We still read everything !!!

Top Stories

  • 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-19 recovery in Connecticut. Good details.
  • 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. Gives you an idea of how powerful Black executives are.
  • Minority entrepreneurs struggled to get small-business relief loans (Philadelphia
  • Tribune)
  • The Fed Is Making Wall Street Forecasters Pay Attention to Black Unemployment (Bloomberg) – Should the Fed run the economy a little hot to reduce Black unemployment. Hell yeah.
  • CFPB Finds Four Out Of Five Payday Loans Are Rolled Over Or Renewed (CFPB)
  • General Motors Vows to Send More Advertising Dollars to Black-Owned Media Companies (Wall Street Journal)
  • Mother creates Just Us mobile app to help protect Black drivers (Good Morning America). More specifically to protect Black drivers during police stops.
  • Black Millennials Were Major Contributors To 2020’s Home Buying Surge (Essence)
  • Companies are condemning Georgia’s new restrictive voting law. Their criticism came too late. (Vox) – Ha, Ha. We thought it was timed perfectly: All benefit and no risk.
  • Mielle Organics Raises More Than $100 Million in Funding (Adweek)

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

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

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