Celebrate National Black Business Month!
Did you know that August is National Black Business Month? There are approximately 3.12 million Black-owned businesses in the U.S. that employ 1.18 million people and generate $133.7 billion in total sales. Ways you can support Black-owned businesses include shopping, engaging with, and sharing your favorite Black-owned businesses with your friends/family and on social media.
In Seattle, we are fans of the Black-owned business Cultur X, an innovative company blending fashion and Black history. We did a video interview with co-Founders Ché and Brea Davis earlier this year which you can watch on our blog post, Honoring the Past and Building the Future with Cultur X.
Get to know other Washington State Black-owned businesses and the people who run them on Intentionalist, an online guide to intentional spending. Their blog features interviews with the owners of the following businesses:
...and much more! You can visit their website to learn about and support more Black-owned businesses, as well as businesses owned by women, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and veterans. Visit their Black History Month marketplace for 20% discount on gift cards. Be sure to read our interview with Intentionalist Founder Laura Clise that we wrote up last year on our blog, Intentional Spending & Belonging with Laura Clise of Intentionalist.
Lastly, The Rudd's R.U.B.B. Initiative, an effort to financially empower Black-owned businesses, is hosting their 3rd Annual Black Business Leadership Conference on August 17th at the University of Washington. Tickets were still available at the writing of this newsletter.
Impact vs. Intent
How do we typically respond when we offend someone? Watch this bite-size video from our archives on Impact vs. Intent from our co-Founder Dr. Caprice Hollins. In the video below, Dr. Hollins talks about where this comes from and how we end up making our offenses someone else's problem.
If you aren't subscribed to our youtube channel, please do so today! We will continue to share short clips from our archives, as well as any new videos we create.
Judy Lee at the Artists of Color Expo
Judy Lee, our Projects Manager, will be featuring work from her portrait project RAW at the 2024 ACES: Artists of Color Expo & Symposium this Saturday at KEXP at the Seattle Center from 10am-8pm.
Her project is a portrait study of unsmiling women without makeup or hairstyling, accompanied by a brief poem written by participants. RAW asks both its participants and viewers to explore the concept of "difficult beauty," a transformative practice that encourages us to delve beyond the surface to explore and redefine beauty outside the patriarchal gaze.
ACES is an all day visual art exhibition featuring POC artists, including a market, workshops, panels, performances, and film screenings. Visit the ACES pages to learn more and to see their full programming lineup!
Unlearning Accessibility with Lindsey T.H. Jackson & Guests
Our Projects Manager Judy Lee recently attended a panel discussion hosted by our colleague Lindsey T.H. Jackson with guests Avery Church, Teddy Cosmo, and Rach Burton on the multifaceted experiences of people with disabilities. She wrote a blog post about some of the takeaways, with the biggest one being how we all have internalized ableism and need to challenge the ableist lens through which we view the world.
Visit her blog post to read more or watch the recording of the hour-long panel discussion above.
Fundraising for Gaza
Thanks to our colleague Martha Hurwitz, we have donated to the "Trekking for Gaza and Donkeysaddle Projects." Jenn Marlow will be hiking 450 miles on the Continental Divide Trail to raise money for the Palestine Grassroots Distribution Project which is currently providing ongoing support for families, assisting in evacuation, re-settlement, medicare care, and addressing humanitarian needs. Visit their fundraising page to learn more and donate!
From the Blog
In cased you missed it, here are the latest articles from our blog:
Upcoming DEIB/Social Justice Events
For details on these and other events, workshops, and conferences happening in the social justice space, visit our Events Calendar. If you have an event you would like us to share, please reach out to us!
8/15: SURJ Abolition Action Hour
8/15: The Tender Work: Acknowledging white responsibility in a racialized World
8/15: NAMI LGBTQ+ Support Group
8/17: 3rd Annual Black Business Leadership Conference
8/17: ACES Artists of Color Expo & Symposium
8/17: Chinatown-International District Block Party
8/17: Columbia City Night Market
8/18: Aware LA: Third Sunday Dialogue
8/20: Deep Diversity: Rebuilding DEI at a Time of Backlash
8/21: NAMI: BIPOC Support Group
8/21: Explore, Learn, and Transform with Elaine
8/21: Capacity Building Workshops to Foster Justice & Belonging
8/21: Stand, Sit, Recline: Exploring Mindfulness Posture
8/22: Cultivating Community Governance: The Power of Planning for the Collective Good
8/23: WABA Korea Expo & Festival 2024
8/24: Social Justice Summer Film Series: Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes
8/27: Race Forward: Governing for Racial Equity
8/29: Anima Leadership DEI Audit Demo
8/29: Working with the Live Wire of Oppression Virtual Introduction
...and so much more! Visit our Events Calendar to see the full schedule.