February is Black History Month, a time born from a celebration of emancipation of enslaved people, that evolved into a commemoration of the black men and women of history whose achievements and contributions paved the way for the black men and women of today. 

The month is often heard of or seen in some capacity, whether in an ill-thought-out advertising scheme, through respectful commemorations of noteworthy individuals online or in broadcasts or through community events that painstakingly map out the journey of Black people in America, from enslavement to the present day.

Buying power and business is growing in the Black community, although disparity can still be seen in the workforce. In the business world, the understanding of Black History Month’s origins can help highlight the importance of racial equality across all industries. 

Who founded Black History Month? 

In 1915, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History was established by Dr. Carter G. Woodson. In 1926, Woodson established Negro History Week during the same week as the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. He figured that, since many people already celebrated both birthdays, setting the week at that point in the month would encourage people to “extend their study of black history, not to create a new tradition,” Daryl Michael Scott, professor of history at Howard University, wrote in an article.  

Woodson admired both men, but “believed that history was made by the people, not simply or primarily by great men,” Scott wrote. 

The public responded to Negro History Week with fervor and excitement.  “Urbanization and industrialization had brought over a million African Americans from the rural South into big cities of the nation. The expanding black middle class became participants in and consumers of black literature and culture. Black history clubs sprang up, teachers demanded materials to instruct their pupils, and progressive whites stepped and endorsed the efforts,” Scott wrote. 

Over the course of the next several decades, the week’s celebration began to stretch out further across the month. “In 1976, fifty years after the first celebration, the Association used its influence to institutionalize the shifts from a week to a month and from Negro history to black history,” Scott wrote. 
 

Black businesses and consumers today

McKinsey & Company, one of the largest “Big Three” management consultancies that is trusted by businesses worldwide, recently did in-depth research on Black consumerism in the United States. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, “Combined spending by all Black households has increased 5 percent annually over the past two decades. It has outpaced the growth rate of combined spending by White households (3 percent).”

When recognizing the impact of spending in the Black community, it’s important to recognize ways that the Black community is also underserved. McKinsey found in its research that those top areas are food, housing, healthcare, broadband, and banking. 

Moreover, the research indicated that “the median annual wage for Black workers is approximately 30 percent, or $10,000, lower than that of white workers — a figure with enormous implications for household economic security, consumption, and the ability to build wealth. Black workers make up 12.9 percent of the US labor force today but earn only 9.6 percent of total US wages.” The organization estimates a “220 billion annual disparity between Black wages today and what they would be in a scenario of full parity.” 

What to do next

In such a short article, it’s difficult to encapsulate everything that racial disparities may entail, as well as all of the proposed solutions or ways to improve. But, rather than trying to solve an issue that has been going on for hundreds of years, I encourage the business community to do two  things: 

1. Support Black-owned businesses. The Fayetteville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau offers an excellent directory of Black-owned businesses in the area that offer a variety of services and products. Find it at https://www.visitfayettevillenc.com/black-owned-business/. 
2. Take time to learn, listening to understand – not to respond. I’m not trying to sound preachy here, and this goes for everyone. Personally, I have many an occasion  I can look back at and wish I had listened better. And in this case, one of the best ways to support Black-owned businesses and Black consumers is to check the presuppositions at the door and take time to ask questions and listen. And upon learning of a need for change, take action. 

And it shouldn’t – and won’t – stop there. We’ve come a long way, and we’ve got a long way to go. But we have a business community that binds together, lifts each other up, and grows together. May we remember the people who came before us who have made Fayetteville what it is today and move together in unity going forward as well.