African American Economics - KOLUMN Magazine

Robert F. Smith on becoming the richest black man in America, what companies get wrong about diversity, and what he’s doing to help mint more black billionaires | Business Insider

February 24, 2020February 24, 2020African American Economics

Robert F. Smith is the richest black man in America, and one of only four to currently have a net worth of more than one billion dollars. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] The son of two Denver-based school teachers, he earned degrees from Cornell University and Columbia Business School before founding Vista Equity Partners, a private equity firm […]

Former Calif. Mayor Johnson shares Black Capital initiative at the Met | The Black Wall Street Times

January 31, 2020January 31, 2020African American Economics

TULSA, Okla. — The former Mayor of Sacramento, California, Kevin Johnson, in partnership with SeedInvest, launched their Black Capital initiative, a collective mission to economically empower African Americans through access to the venture capital industry. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Their first visit, since the initial launch, was Tulsa, Oklahoma — once a black entrepreneurial hub in the […]

What Was the Black International? | JSTOR

January 31, 2020January 31, 2020African American Economics

The twentieth-century struggle for African independence began in Paris salons hosted by the daughters of elite blacks, then travelled by telegram and steamship. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Relationships were the essence of the early twentieth century “black international.” In Paris, the Martinician writer Jane Nardal took to her typewriter to make sense of a pattern she was […]

The Unequal Financial Burden for Black Caregivers | OZY

January 17, 2020January 17, 2020African American Economics

Carlo St. Juste Jr. is on his way to bring his mother to a hospital appointment when he takes OZY’s call. A part-time acupuncturist and businessman, St. Juste is also the primary caregiver for his 69-year-old mom, who suffers from chronic kidney disease and diabetes. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] “I’ve organized my time so I can do […]

Think Debtors Prisons Are a Thing of the Past? Not in Mississippi. | The Marshall Project

January 10, 2020January 10, 2020African American Economics, Debtors Prison

A few years ago, I read slave narratives to explore the lives of black agricultural workers after the end of the Civil War. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] JACKSON, Miss.—During her shifts at a Church’s Chicken, Annita Husband looked like the other employees. She wore the same blue and red polo shirt, greeted the same customers and slung […]

The plunder of black wealth in Chicago, captured in film | The Chicago Reporter

January 9, 2020January 9, 2020African American Economics, African American Wealth

Black families in Chicago lost an estimated $4 billion due to predatory contract buying, a Duke University’s Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity study found. Artist in residence Bruce Orenstein spoke to surviving victims. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] In just two short decades — while the post World War II housing boom created the wealth of […]

Making black dollars work for us | The St. Louis American

December 21, 2019December 21, 2019#BuyBlack, African American Commuities ...

All holidays in the U.S. are highly commercialized. Christmas is the most commercialized to the tune of $475 billion, according to National Retail Federation estimates. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Lost in those billions is a big portion of the $1 trillion-plus spending power of black folks. Our consumerism rarely comes with demands for accountability and respect. Some […]

Tracy McGrady Is Launching An Advisory Program To Keep Young Athletes From Going Broke | Forbes

December 20, 2019December 20, 2019African American Athletes, African American Economics

When athletes turn pro, they’re often exposed to the kind of money they never could have imagined—and a newfound need to manage that money responsibly. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] It can be hard to resist the temptation to spend lavishly and instead start thinking of the future, but that sort of lack of foresight has landed a […]

How I Get By: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier | Vice

December 6, 2019January 15, 2020African American Economics

Cierra Brown is trying to do all she can on her own, but it rarely feels like she’s doing enough.

Starbucks hires Nzinga Shaw as global Chief Inclusion & Diversity Officer | Face2Face Africa

November 28, 2019November 28, 2019African American Economics, African American Professionals

American coffee company and coffeehouse chain, Starbucks has hired Nzinga Shaw as global chief inclusion and diversity officer. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] After five years, Shaw exits the Atlanta Hawks and Philips Arena where she has been chief diversity and inclusion officer. “I am overly grateful to the Hawks ownership, CEO Steve Koonin and NBA organization for […]