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The War On
African American Entrepreneurs
By Gary Smith
African American Entrepreneurs
By Gary Smith
We've witnessed the War on Poverty and endured the War on Drugs, but the ongoing War on Black Entrepreneurship is a different battle altogether. The assault on black entrepreneurs, traces back to the late 1800s when black landowners, primarily farmers, were either cheated out of their land or forcibly expelled.
The Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a thriving hub of Black-owned businesses known as Black Wall Street, exemplified the prosperity of black entrepreneurs with over 35 city blocks of shops, hotels, and theaters in the early 20th century.
The Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a thriving hub of Black-owned businesses known as Black Wall Street, exemplified the prosperity of black entrepreneurs with over 35 city blocks of shops, hotels, and theaters in the early 20th century.
Similar vibrant black economies existed in various cities across the nation, like Black Bottom in Detroit, only to face destruction, such as the demolition, for a freeway. Despite the passage of time, the struggle persists into 2024, with systemic barriers disproportionately affecting Black entrepreneurs.
The aftermath of the Great Recession saw the top 20% wealthiest Americans gaining wealth, while 80% of black families fell behind, illustrating the deep-seated inequities.
The aftermath of the Great Recession saw the top 20% wealthiest Americans gaining wealth, while 80% of black families fell behind, illustrating the deep-seated inequities.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, people of color, women, and rural Americans encountered barriers hindering entrepreneurship. Disparities in wealth, limited access to funding, and systemic biases in loan approval processes persist, intensifying the challenges faced by Black and Latino entrepreneurs.
The pandemic further exacerbated these inequities, revealing the racial, gender, and geographic disparities in access to government relief and the subsequent closure of businesses owned by entrepreneurs of color.
The pandemic further exacerbated these inequities, revealing the racial, gender, and geographic disparities in access to government relief and the subsequent closure of businesses owned by entrepreneurs of color.