businesses

Now Open: ASCEND LA Looks for Budding BIPOC Businesses to Take to the Next Level

Applications are now open for ASCEND LA’s 2021 Spring cohort. After the success of its inaugural cohort in 2020, the free business accelerator program has doubled its capacity, selecting 30 businesses owned by women and people of color to undergo a management education program, obtain certification and bid preparation support, connect with regional and national supply chains, receive 1-on-1 advising with loan and procurement specialists, and access flexible capital resources.

Congressional Black Caucus Focuses on Economic Recovery of African Americans in COVID-19 Crisis

The first draft of the COVID-19 Senate stimulus bill focused money to bailout large corporations and the top one percent. But after days of negotiation that included President Trump big footing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the legislation was changed to focus more on the needs of main street Americans.

Ending Workforce Discrimination is Up to Us

During my tenure at the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO), it became clear to me that access was the foundation of economic opportunity. The transportation sector lacked diversity, equity and inclusion, and this was glaringly obvious to both leadership and employees. Pathways began to emerge to grow a diverse pool of talent, but it was obvious that a more organizational framework was needed to operate at full capacity to best serve veterans, women, underrepresented, and underserved workers; groups that had been previously overlooked.

City Council Addresses RecycleLA Program Difficulties

In response to widespread anger and complaints over the soaring cost of the new RecycleLA program, the City Council voted Wednesday to study the possibility of allowing businesses to share waste bins.

Neutralizing the Right Wing Political Agenda

There’s a lesson to be learned from the Confederate flag quickly and unexpectedly falling into disfavor following the murder of nine Bible-studying African Americans, including the pastor, at Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, S.C. The lesson is that the economic clout of African Americans and their progressive allies can be used to pressure businesses to do the right thing, which in turn can keep the far right wing in check.