Hi there
It’s October which is synonymous with Black History Month, so this week I thought that I would write a short piece about where you can find information concerning Black businesses, entrepreneurs and significant figures from the 1800s through to present day.
In an article by Ronald Barba, called 21-successful-black-entrepreneurs-throughout-history, we are introduced to men and women who changed the way the US business landscape looked. They were entrepreneurs in fields such as engineering, banking and publishing to name but a few. Please see 21 Successful Black Entrepreneurs, for the full article.
One of the entrepreneurs mentioned in the article is Annie Malone, who you may recall from my blog called In Celebration of Women Part Two! She founded Poro College, a commercial and educational college established to develop cosmetics and hair products for African-Americans. In Top Black Leaders of 1800s and 1900s, D L Chandler of News One continues with more prominent figures in the Black business world, some of whom appear in the Ronald Barba article. Chandler says that these particular business people were chosen as a way of:
‘highlighting their significant contributions to American society.’
Whilst there can be no doubt about the effect that America has had on the business world globally, on this side of the pond there have been some figures who have made an impact on British society and beyond. In 2008 David Smith of The Guardian wrote The 10 powerful Black Britons who changed the world, see this and in 2014, Natricia Duncan for the Voice online wrote about The Most Powerful Black People in Britain Revealed
I hope you enjoyed this article and if you feel motivated to do more research on Black History Month then a good place to start would be www.blackhistorymonth.org.uk.
Take care,
pmnoblewrites 