Is it Enough to Be Pro-Reparations for Black Americans?
I remember going pro-Black during the peak of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and starting to support Black-owned businesses like D'IYANU. Then I started learning about the reparations for Black Americans movement. Today, many, which definitely is synonymous with "not all," Blacks are joining pro-Black and reparationist spaces to hear about reparations initiatives. It is a good incentive for African Americans new to efforts centered around rebuilding Black communities. That should only be a starting point.
Boycott Stuff Made Using Prison Labor, Support Black-Owned
Colorado Correctional Industries (CCI), Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises (PRIDE), and UNICOR (most notably) are just a few of the companies which specialize in providing prisoner-made products, at least according to reports by University of California, Berkeley, American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), and Prison Inside. It may not sound important if you're apolitical, but we Black Americans should care more about how the brands we support spend and make money.
Why I Stopped Endorsing the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF)
For years I recommended US military veterans seeking free entrepreneurship training or certification testing to check out Onward to Opportunity (O2O) by the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF). I'm Syracuse University (SU) alum. IVMF is on SU campus. It's a rarely discussed benefit that can help vets of all ages. Then I attended an entrepreneurship program.
Black-Owned Supplement Businesses
I rarely write about supplements. My best posts regarding the topic are about weight management and overcoming fitness plateaus, and years old. These Black-owned supplement businesses can help you build muscle, reach a healthier weight, and improve general health.
Selling Black-Owned Businesses to White-Owned Corporations
I'll make this short. I hope that black business owners selling their companies to larger, white-owned corporations does not become a trend. I believe that we need to keep that money in our communities. However, I do understand that many founders sell their business to a larger company to make change elsewhere.
If a Black-owned business is sold outside of the Black community, I prefer that it be publicly announced, unlike Greenwood bank allegedly did. Remove the business from any Black chamber of commerce listings. Remove "Black-owned" from all parts of the brand's online presence. And I'll find a new Black-owned business to support.
