- Is it time to do away with the term "Black-Owned"?
- Should "Black-Owned" businesses to compete in the open market place?
- Why should "Black-Owned" businesses advertise or promote themselves as Black-Owned?
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Alternative to Buy Black?
National Black Chamber of Commerce: Notes from the Dominican Republic - the 2nd Pan African Entrepreneurs Conference
Black-owned businesses are already competing in the open marketplace. It is not a fair competition because, in addition to racism from white consumers, members of our own community do not support our businesses.
The Black dollar and the Black pound disappear from our communities in the blinking of an eye. We are so eager to give our money to everybody else. Meanwhile, Chinese, Korean, Jewish, Latino, Irish, Italian - you name it, other groups are happy to support businesses in and from their own communities.
Those of us who are conscious Africans know the importance of supporting Black-owned businesses, as brother Wes has spelled out. Remember, Kwanzaa is an opportunity to Buy Black!
This is why Malcolm said we would still be marching 50 years later - we do not own our own businesses. Actually, we always have, but we don't support them. Click here to read.
We don't have open business
We don't live in anything that resembles a free market or an open market. We live in a system of racism white supremacy functional in all 9 areas of human activity economics, education, entertainment, labor, law, politics, religion, sex, and war. Economics is just one area in which we (Black people) do not have proper access. Psychologically, we are not oriented to spend money with each other and do not collectively see the benefit of doing this. If I were a business-owner, I'd just try to keep things simple, plain, and clear. I think that the words 'black-owned', 'black-operated', etc. might be death words for a business under the system of racism white supremacy. I wish it weren't so, but it seems to be based on the evidence. A couple of black people have enjoyed racial showcasing like an Earl Graves and McAfee (the owner of McAfee software company), but McAfee is visually anonymous and Earl Graves is not, but they are exception not the rule.
Black owned and operated businesses should be the province of Black people. One of the keys to self-sufficiency and economic independence is recognizing that doing business with our enemies is self-destructive and self-defeating.
Nevertheless, Black people seem to be operating under a "spell" in which they cannot make financial decisions that are in their own and their communities best interests. 98% of every dollar Blacks earn is returned to the white and other ethnic group businesses, while Black owned and operated businesses languish, Black unemployment rises, Black crime escalates, and Black neighborhoods decay.
Just recently, I read an article where two large Black church associations are collaborating on a boycott of BB&T Bank because of it's predatory lending practices. On the surface, this seems to be a noble cause, however when we think deeply about this "boycott", we must ask ourselves this question: "Since the Black Church deposits over 1 Billion dollars into WHITE banks every Monday morning, why isn't the Black Church establishing their own nation-wide chain of banks that Black people own and operate?"
Think of the positive impact of such a move - Black businesses could borrow to provide better services to our community, Black families could borrow to buy homes, cars, furniture, Black folk could borrow to establish new Black owned and operated businesses, etc.
The Black Church would not have to compete with white banks, because white banks are not willing to loan money to Blacks anyway. Thus, the Black Church would have a closed loop economic system to prosper within.
But, NO, the Black Church cannot unite itself enough to perform this simple act of self-interest. Unfortunately, I am compelled to conclude that the Black Church, as well as the Black community has no future, unless and until the Black community comes out from under this "spell" and begin to think and act with it's own best interest in mind, IMHO. Shalom.
There is no Black Church. To have a Black Church, you have to have a Black Theology. This does not exist. We have Black people worshiping a white God and we spend our energy, time, and money proving to white people how we disrespect ourselves and each other and how we want the white God and white people to love and accept us. The few truly attempted Black churches that exist are well-spaced and largely anonymous.