by Carolyn M. Brown November 18, 2016
On Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016, National Urban League Young Professionals chapters nationwide will engage in an annual Day of Empowerment. Today, black consumers constitute $1.3 trillion in buying power; yet, purportedly, studies show that only $0.02 cents of every dollar circulates back into black-owned businesses. There is enormous potential for black consumers to leverage their economic power by spending their dollars with black businesses.
Day of Empowerment
This year, NULYP aims to empower the black entrepreneur, as well as the black consumer. Chapters will host events in partnership with National Urban League Guilds and Entrepreneurship Centers that educate chapter and community members about circulating their dollars in local communities. Chapters will continue to highlight economic empowerment year-round. NULYP will be creating a Young Professionals Business Directory. The directory will be available for sharing beginning on Nov. 19, during the National Day of Empowerment activities.
“African Americans own 1.9 million businesses, which contribute $136 billion in economic output and provide more than 900,000 [jobs] per year, according to the Unites States Minority Business Development Agency,” said NULYP President Carlos Clanton in a released statement. “The economic impact of the black dollar is being highlighted in our theme and activities this year.”
Research suggests that communities’ generational economic empowerment is linked to entrepreneurial success. What’s more, research shows that black-owned businesses are the second largest employers of black workers next to the government sector. Therefore, the best way to improve black communities and provide more jobs is to advance and strengthen black-owned businesses.
