Black Tech, Black in Tech, and Black Tech Founders
Some of us have heard about Black Wall Street, and some of us have heard about Wakanda. Unfortunately, none of us have lived to experience what either of those places represented — Black Group Economics. Black Wall Street, also known as the Greenwood District of Tulsa, OK was burned down and completely decimated almost 100 years ago. And Wakanda, well, is only a figment of Marvel’s imagination — a promising and inspiring one no less, but still very much a fictional place. I often wonder what it would be like to have experienced life in a place like Black Wall Street — a place where I’m inspired by Black founders, a place where #BuyBluck and #SupportBlackBusiness is a way of life, rather than a hashtag, because that’s all I’m surrounded by.
I imagine I’d start my day the way I always do — grabbing my phone and checking my messages. In my group chat, my friends are discussing the details for the upcoming AfroTech event. Group chat messages haven’t been the same since all my friends started using iMessage stickers from Holler, and after scrolling through all the hilarious content, we finally decide to book our flights through Airfordable. I’m personally excited to hear from Morgan & Zim — two amazing female founders that I draw inspiration from.
I check my Calendly to see what meetings I have for the day. I have a follow-up strategy meeting with Jasmine from Five To Nine — we need to finish discussing the final details of the upcoming Tech ERG Summit. Right after that meeting, I’m jumping on a call with Shaniqua from Noirefy to put together a digital networking event, with the goal of getting talented people hired into permanent positions. We’re evaluating ticketing platforms for the event: Eventnoire, TicketFalcon, or IdealSeat. Having several options is a good problem to have!
Time is flying by and right before I end the workday, I get a call from the team over at Diversant. They’ve asked me to moderate a conversation featuring Asmau Ahmed, and they were calling to make sure I had received the check for the speaker fee. I let them know that I have, and make a promise to deposit the check on my way home. I leave work for the day, and as I’m pulling into Greenwood Bank, I see Robert Smith speaking with one of the bank founders. For some, it would be a celebrity sighting, but for me, it’s just a regular day in the neighborhood.
A short, sweet story right? Sure. But what’s unique about this story is that every person mentioned is a Black tech founder, and every business mentioned is Black-owned. I didn’t highlight that in the story because I imagine back in the days of Black Wall Street, or in the fictional world of Wakanda, we wouldn’t have to call out these things out. Black businesses would be widespread, and Black founders would be commonplace. Check out all of the hyperlinks above to learn more about their impact on the Black community. Let’s support our businesses so that we can continue to change the narrative, level the playing field, and make #SupportingBlackBusiness a lifestyle.
