• Women

by Jeroslyn JoVonn

March 8, 2023

Famed Female Pilot Inspires Next Generation of Diverse Pilots at United Aviate Academy’s Women’s History Month Luncheon

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The United Aviate Academy tapped famed pilot and travel journalist Kellee Edwards to help kick off Women’s History Month by speaking to their class of diverse student pilots.

On Friday, United Aviate Academy hosted an honorary luncheon presented by the United Explorer Card from Chase at their base in Goodyear, AR. The exclusive event was open to female students and aimed at empowering women and people of color to become pilots.

During the luncheon, a diverse group of student pilots, consisting of women and people of color, gained industry insight from an established pioneer Black woman in aviation.

Edwards was proud to speak to the student pilots about her journey to gain her pilot license and how it helped propel her career in television. Edwards, who made history as the first Black woman to host a travel adventure show on The Travel Channel, spoke about her commitment to paying it forward and inspiring the next generation of women in aviation.

“What people don’t understand often is they see the limelight and the accomplishments, but it’s so hard to do the work that I do, especially being the first, often the only,” Edwards told BLACK ENTERPRISE.

Witnessing all of the diversity on the United Aviate Academy campus was an eye-opener for Edwards, who launched her aviation career often being the only woman, let alone the only Black woman.

“I didn’t have any female instructors like that. I was in a plane full of men all the time,” she said. “So, they have this community and I just told them all, ‘You guys are all going to be better pilots than me.'”

Elsewhere, we spoke with student pilot Abby Awosanya, a recipient of the Women in Aviation International scholarship, who shared her journey of wanting to become a pilot after taking long flights with her parents as a child to their native Nigeria.

“I knew I wanted to fly since I was six years old, during my first flight to Nigeria,” she told BLACK ENTERPRISE.

“You can ask me about my trip to Nigeria, and I couldn’t tell you anything about what I did when I was there, but I could tell you about my journey there and back.”

The luncheon comes two years after United Aviate Academy announced plans to train 5,000 new pilots by 2030 with at least 50% being women or people of color. The initiative is aimed at bringing much-needed diversity to an industry Black people once couldn’t enter unless they enlisted themselves in the military.

Now, with pilot schools like United Aviate Academy, learning how to fly a plane is more accessible than ever before. With pilots like Kellee Edwards and future pilots like Abby Awosanya, we are starting to see a shift in aviation that will make way for more Black pilots in the future.

“There’s a common stigma that when companies open up opportunities for underrepresented groups to join their industry, that the quality is compromised,” Awosanya said.

“However, that’s not the case. We are just as equally talented and qualified to do the jobs that are there.”

Cher and her boyfriend Alexander “A.E.” Edwards might be the next power couple in music.

The legendary singer announced that she has been working on new music that includes a collaboration with boyfriend Edwards, a music executive.

According to E! News, the two lovebirds are creating some fire tracks.

“I’m going to England to make two albums,” Cher told the outlet during the Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love taping on March 2. “Some of the songs Alexander gave me, so I’m pretty excited about that. He’s a producer and a writer and he does everything, so I’m happy about that.”

“I think like any artist,” she added, “when you’ve got something good, you’re excited.”

Cher also revealed plans to go on tour this year.

“I’m trying to get myself in shape,” she said.

The musicians were first spotted together in November 2022 when they were photographed holding hands in Los Angeles. Immediately following the snaps, the couple received heavy backlash about their age gap. Cher, 76, found herself defending her relationship with Edwards, who is 40 years younger.

 

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“Love doesn’t know math,” Cher responded to a tweet in 2022 when asked about Edwards, 36, who was in a previous relationship with model and television personality Amber Rose.

The criticisms haven’t only come from external parties. As BLACK ENTERPRISE recently reported, Cher’s two sons were unhappy at the news of the couple heading to Vegas to elope. The dysfunction among the family led to Cher contemplating cutting her two sons out of her will.

“Cher is mad at them. She’s ready to cut them out of her life completely,” a knowledgeable source shared in February. “She’s been hell-bent on marrying this guy and is speaking to her lawyers about adjusting her will to make A.E. her sole beneficiary.”

• News

by Sharelle B. McNair

March 8, 2023

Guns for Racism? Twitter Bots Advertising Cheap Guns for Using the N-Word

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Racist tweets have made their return since Elon Musk took over Twitter last year. Now things have gotten worse, as spam seems to be out for revenge.

Rolling Stone reported users are being inundated with spam – offering guns for sale – that directly violates Twitter policy. The spam, or bots, are constantly being flagged or reported but it looks as if specific keywords trigger the tweets. If tweeters use the word “guns” or abrasive profanity, a bot will reply “yooo i got cheap guns 4 sale, click the link in my bio.”

According to The Associated Press, Twitter made the announcement last October that 1,500 accounts were removed for posting hate speech. The company also claimed to have reduced the visibility of posts containing slurs, making them harder to find on the platform.

The social media platform must have missed the mark when it comes to their Black tweeters. Bots appear to respond to tweets containing the n-word, targeting potential buyers through a crude form of racial profiling. Black Twitter users have been bombarded with this type of spam, with the link taking users to an underground website, Telegram, full of drugs and firearms. However, some users speculated that law enforcement was behind the spam accounts, specifically targeting Black people.

Of course some users found humor in the issue.

“wassup gang tap tha link in my bio if you need cheap n clean glokks. 302” pic.twitter.com/w8OMgT7CnU

— Su (@SHOTGUNTlMMY) February 24, 2023

Experts like Dr. Jen Golbeck, a professor at University of Maryland, said that while that’s not completely impossible, it’s not likely. “I’ve talked to plenty of FBI guys about this before and Twitter bots seem beyond their normal set of skills,” Golbeck said. “Not that there aren’t people in law enforcement who could do it, but it’s more techy than normal — entrapment at scale.”

Since the Musk takeover, data shows a rapid increase in racist dialogue and verbiage towards Black people and the LGBTQ+ community. Racist undertones have been used over 26,000 times – three times more than in 2022. The trans community has been attacked, with an increase of 53% and hurtful terms towards homosexual men went up 39%.

• Business

by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors

March 8, 2023

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Kicks Off National Tour to Help Underrepresented Entrepreneurs

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The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in an effort to provide assistance to under-resourced inventors and small businesses will kick off its national tour by hosting a two-day event in Minneapolis through its Patent Pro Bono Program. The free event, co-presented by the USPTO and the Patent Pro Bono Advisory Council a 501(c)(3), will focus on helping under-resourced inventors gather information on how to file patents, access funding and eventually create more jobs.

“By meeting people where they are with these free legal services, the USPTO is working to strengthen our innovation economy by making it more inclusive and equitable for all,” remarked Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and USPTO Director Kathi Vidal. “Pro bono counsel serves as a valuable bridge to the innovation economy by providing critical assistance to underrepresented inventors. For example, our data shows that while women make up about 13% of U.S. inventors, 43% of those who utilize our pro bono services identify as women, while 35% identify as African American or Black, 14% identify as Hispanic American, 5.7% as Asian American or Native Pacific Islander, and 1.5% as Native American.”

The events will take place March 8 and 9 at the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management and will recognize the 100th patent awarded in Minnesota as well as provide a day of information and networking about the Patent Pro Bono Program and how it can benefit under-resourced inventors.

The USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program launched ten years ago in Minnesota and is now in all 50 states and inspired a global program, the Inventor Assistance Program (IAP) facilitated by The World Intellectual Property Organization which operates in nine countries worldwide. The Minnesota program is facilitated through LegalCORPS, a nonprofit based in Minneapolis that provides free assistance in non-litigation business law matters to low-income inventors. Since the program started in Minnesota, the USPTO has awarded 100 patents to inventors represented through LegalCorps, a milestone that will be celebrated during the March 8th evening event.

USPTO and The Pro Bono Patent Program are working closely with Minneapolis companies and organizations on the March 8th and 9th events including Brown Venture Group, Launch Minnesota, Forge North, Bank of America, BETA and the University of Minnesota’s MN Cup.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to bring together our ecosystem to support under-represented inventors not only in our community but across the country,” said Paul Campbell, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Brown Venture Group. “By providing these essential services this program is ‘de-risking’ these inventors which will mean they are more likely to get funding and bring their ideas to fruition.”

Inventors interested in attending the free seminar on the 9th can sign up for the morning session here and the afternoon session here. The agenda is as follows:

PATHWAYS TO INCLUSIVE INNOVATION DETAILED AGENDA

9:00-9:15 am – Welcome

9:15-10:00am – Patents & Trademarks 101

10:00-10:10am – Break

10:10-11:10am – Free Legal Services: Patents

11:10-11:15am – Break

11:15am-12:15pm – Governmental Commercialization Services

12:30-1:45 pm – Lunch

1:45-3:00 pm – Panel Discussion + Q&A (Jessica Johnson-Cope, James Patterson, DJ Dozier, Girma Wolde Michael, Harvey Schabes, Warren Tuttle)

3:00-3:45 pm – Break Out Sessions

• Working with Technology Transfer Offices: Harvey Schabes, NASA,Warren Tuttle, Open Innovation
• Banking for Startups:Lucas Giambelluca, Bank of America, Karen Trouba, Bank of America, Jarrett Campbell, Bank of America, Rina Arline, Bank of America
• Alternative Funding Sources: Mickayla Zinsli Rosard, Groove Capital, Dr. Michael Weatherly, Sports Innovation
• Women Led Businesses & Startups: Jessica Johnson-Cope, Johnson Security Bureau
• Scaling Your Startup: Michael A Jackson, Black Tech Talent, Neela Mollgaard, Launch MN

3:45-4:00 pm – Closing Remarks: Dr. Paul Campbell, Brown Venture Group

4:00-5:00 pm – Networking & Skill Sharing

Additional events will be announced in the near future.

Colgate-Palmolive, a caring, innovative growth company that is reimagining a healthier future for all, is proud to announce that it is now accepting applications for its second annual Inspire our Future scholarship program. The program highlights Colgate’s commitment to creating pathways to education for Black and African American students.

Colgate will award up to 10 educational grants that are $10,000 each to students who demonstrate a sustained commitment to their communities and are pursuing majors in Sales / Marketing or Supply Chain. Recipients will also have the opportunity to participate in a mentorship program, matching them with Colgate-Palmolive employees in their respective fields. The goal of the mentorship is to provide these students with guidance and support as they achieve their educational goals and begin navigating their careers.

“Colgate’s aspirations around diversity, equity and inclusion are to create pathways that allow people to break through everyday barriers and to provide equity in pursuit of opportunity for underrepresented people,” said Derek Gordon, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer. “We are excited to continue this program and create meaningful impact for tomorrow’s leaders.”

To apply, applicants must be a current college sophomore or junior planning to continue full-time study at an accredited four-year college or university in the U.S., who self-identify as Black or African American and meet the criteria outlined in the application links below. Based on satisfactory academic performance, awards are renewable for up to two years or until a bachelor’s degree is earned, whichever occurs first. Recipients can use funds towards tuition at an accredited college or university, as well as other educational expenses. This year, award recipients from 2022 will be eligible to reapply for the 2023 grant. Applications for the 2023-2024 academic year will close on April 6, 2023.

For students studying Supply Chain Management, Business Analytics, Business Administration, Management Information Systems, Specific Engineering majors (Chemical, Environmental, Industrial, Mechanical, Packaging) and Engineering Technology the application is located here and for students studying Communications, Finance, Marketing and Business Administration the application is located here.

To administer the Inspire our Future scholarship, Colgate-Palmolive is working with Scholarship America, a non-profit organization that partners with students, parents, colleges, businesses, and communities to help students fulfill their college dreams. Colgate’s selection committee will interview select applicants and notify recipients in June 2023. Awards will be disbursed to recipients in August 2023.

To learn more about Colgate-Palmolive, please visit: https://www.colgatepalmolive.com/en-us.

• Business

by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors

March 8, 2023

Entrepreneur Makes History as the First Black Private Mortgage Lender With a $100M Warehouse Line

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Meet Troy Smith, founder and CEO of G1 Commercial Mortgage, a faith-based Private Credit Fund based in Charles County, Maryland, the wealthiest African American County in the nation.

His company is a direct lender that offers finance options to real estate investors, and he is reportedly the first African American mortgage lender to have delegated underwriting authority over a $100 million warehouse line.

Troy positioned his company within the private mortgage market by creating bank-alternative lending capital for mortgage products that would be very challenging for individuals to find. They have created the first-ever Mortgage Revenue Sharing Network (MRSN – pronounced mer-sehn). For the first time, a national Private Credit Fund has agreed to share the origination fees charged on a business-purpose mortgage transaction with anyone who shares their loan programs with others.

Meet Cheryl Brown and her 8-year-old granddaughter, Skye, the founders of Skye Monroe Skincare, a Black-owned brand that has been described as “the best natural skincare for kids on the market.”

Their company focuses on providing quality beauty products formulated with nature and science to help kids, teens, and tweens to develop good skin care habits at an early age and ensure their skin is healthy.

Despite the steady emergence of beauty brands and skincare solutions, many of the products seem to focus more on meeting the needs of adults. However, Cheryl, Skye, and their team at Skye Monroe Skincare are looking to change this narrative by bringing quality beauty solutions to kids without exposing them to harmful chemicals and ultimately helping young girls feel confident.

Skye Monroe Skincare aims to “make children feel beautiful, confident, and healthy regardless of their physical disabili&es when they are looking in the mirror daily while developing a good skincare rou&ne.” The company is created as a 2 steps skincare brand offering the Aloe Gentle Cleanser and Hydrating Face Moisturizer, designed to work together to deliver fantastic results while being gentle on delicate skin.

Cheryl Brown was inspired by her granddaughter, Skye, to launch the brand, after refusing to use her adult skincare on her delicate skin as they spent time together during the pandemic. Describing her as the face of the brand, Cheryl decided to work on providing skincare products for Skye and other children. Cheryl leverages her background in the childcare business as well as a co-author of Basic Table Manners for Children and years of experience working in a multilevel skincare company and passion for helping children become the best version of themselves to create the Sky Monroe brand.

Skye Monroe Skincare will be donating $1 to Basics International in Ghana for every purchase. The school was established to educate and develop children living in Chorkor, Accra, helping them to have a shot at living a good life, irrespective of their background.

To learn more visit the company’s official web site at SkyeMonroeSkincare.com. The advocacy for good skincare routines for kids continues across social media, including Facebook and Instagram.

This story first appeared on Blacknews.com.

• Entrepreneurship

by Jeffrey McKinney

March 7, 2023

Operation HOPE Leads New Action Plan To Enlarge Black Business Ownership

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Hoping to elevate Black entrepreneurship, some top leaders from the private and public sectors examined fresh ways to make that happen.

They gathered as Operation HOPE, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the U.S. Treasury hosted a roundtable last week to honor Freedman’s Bank. The forum allowed participants a chance to frame an actionable plan that extends the path to Black business ownership, a tried-and-true strategy for boosting wealth and creating new jobs.

Black entrepreneurship has been an instrumental tool for building Black wealth for years. Research in recent years has shown that the median net worth for Black business owners is more than 10 times higher than for Blacks who do not own businesses.

John Hope Bryant, founder, chairman, and CEO of Operation HOPE, the nation’s largest  non-profit dedicated on financial empowerment for underserved communities, was joined by SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman, U.S. Treasury Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo, and other attendees (included here).

The forum acknowledged the anniversary of the founding of the Freedman’s Savings Bank by President Abraham Lincoln on March 3, 1865.  At its peak, the bank had $57 million in deposits (adjusted for inflation) and some 70,000 depositors before it closed in 1874. At Bryant’s suggestion in 2015, the Treasury Annex building was renamed the Freedman’s Bank Building in Washington, D.C.

“The Freedman’s Bureau Act was the original small business program for formerly enslaved Black Americans, connecting assets–40 acres and a mule-with capital and financial education through the Freedman’s Bank,” Bryant said. “At Operation HOPE, we are building on this legacy, having created 185,000 new Black businesses since 2020 under our 1 Million Black Business Initiative, of which the SBA has been a significant partner. We are grateful to Administrator Guzman and her team for their ongoing support.”

The initiative was created two years in partnership with e-commerce giant Shopify to create 1 million Black-owned businesses over the next 10 years. It was among the key takeaways and challenges discussed at the forum. Participants concurred that the need for continued partnership between the federal government, private organizations, and community leadership can improve economic outcomes for all.

Other topics included boosting visibility and connections to help advance entrepreneurship. Black founders interested in learning how to qualify for procurement opportunities can do so at no cost here.

Hope added his organization will work with partners to expand programs that provide career education and training, access to mentorship and contacts, as well as access to capital. He emphasized those elements are critical to reinvesting in growing small business, particularly in communities of color.

“Today, there is a disconnect between policy makers and organizations that serve on the frontlines to support Black entrepreneurs (both non-profit and private sector). HOPE seeks to serve as a Sherpa to help connect the dots and improve outcomes.”

To help boost the support of Black-owned plans, some actionable plans from the forum included:

• “Increasing access to capital—HOPE’s 1MBB program participants are offered $25,000 worth of in-kind services, including access to Shopify e-commerce experts upon program completion. The SBA has also committed to providing funding opportunities.”

• “Developing entrepreneurial talent—HOPE’s 1MBB program provides free counseling and low-cost training to new entrepreneurs and existing small businesses. Business planning, financial coaching, and even legal services are offered at no cost. Of note, Black women have been leading the charge for the increase in new small business creation.”
• “Educating Black Business Owners on procurement—This includes building the pipeline and educating entrepreneurs on how to apply and qualify for government contracting opportunities. The certification process can be tedious, but help is available through SBA resources.”

• News

by Booker Jones

March 7, 2023

Workday Inc.’s Artificial Intelligence Allegedly Discriminates Against Blacks

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Workday Inc.’s artificial intelligence screening tools allegedly exclude Black applicants. 

Bloomberg Law reported that Derek Mobley, who filed a new lawsuit, will represent applicants who have allegedly been discriminated against. The lawsuit claims that Workday also discriminates against people over 40 years of age, as well as those with disabilities. 

The lawsuit also claims Mobely, a Black man over 40, has been applying since 2018 and has been continuously denied. The lawsuit also alleges that Mobley applied to 80-100 positions at companies that use Workday as a screening tool. 

“The Representative Plaintiff seeks …injunctive relief which reforms Workday’s screening products, policies, practices, and procedures so that the Representative Plaintiff and the class members will be able to compete fairly in the future for jobs and enjoy terms and conditions of employment traditionally afforded similarly situated employees outside of the protected categories,” the lawsuit read. 

According to the lawsuit, Workday’s screening shows “a pattern and practice of discrimination.” 

A spokesperson for Workday responded by saying that the company is “committed to trustworthy AI.”

 “We engage in a risk-based review process throughout our product lifecycle to help mitigate any unintended consequences, as well as extensive legal reviews to help ensure compliance with regulations,” the spokesperson said.

Ruha Benjamin, a professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, has done brilliant research on science, technology, and medicine. 

During a discussion with Thoughtspot, Benjamin spoke of bias in AI and data. 

“These systems [rely] on historic data, historic forms of decision-making practices that then get fed into the algorithms to train them how to make decisions. And so if we acknowledge that part of that historic data and those patterns of decision-making have been discriminatory, it means that both the data and oftentimes the models, which are built to make important, sometimes life-and-death decisions for people, are being reproduced under the guise of objectivity. ” 

Benjamin continued, “The main danger of it, perhaps more dangerous than human bias, is that we assume that the technology is neutral and objective. So we don’t question it as much — not as much as we would [with] a racist judge or doctor or police. We think, ‘Oh, it’s coming to us through a computer screen. Okay. I give these resources to this patient and not this patient.’ And [we] don’t question where that decision came from.”

Chris Rock’s Netflix special, Selective Outrage, has moved other comedians to share their thoughts on the fiasco. 

Marlon Wayans is the latest comedian to weigh in. The veteran funnyman sat with The Hollywood Reporter to discuss his HBO Max special, God Loves Me, which addressed the Oscars slap. However,  Wayans will not touch on Jada Pinket-Smith’s alopecia. 

Wayans said he first used the Oscars slap as material during an improv show shortly after the shocking incident played out on national television.

“I’d seen the slap when it happened. I swear I watched it like everybody else,” Wayans said. “And I called Chris, I called Will. See, everybody’s a friend, so I texted Will and was like, ‘Are you OK?’ Chris, I was like, ‘Where’s your face?’ (Laughs.) And I said, ‘Are you OK?’”

Wayans continued, “I was doing a show in Oxnard that weekend, and I talked about it onstage at the Improv. I had five minutes of thoughts, and I like to speak truth onstage and see where it goes. So I did that and by the end of the week, I had 15 minutes. I kept exploring the truth and it became like a Rubik’s cube to me. I got one side. That’s the Chris Rock side. I got what’s my experience with Jada, and then what’s my experience with Will. What’s my experience in the industry? What’s my experience as a Black person? What do white people feel? Before I knew it, I had an hour of material. I was actually doing a set about my mom, and dealing with the grief of losing my mother. I was like, ‘Sorry, Ma, I’m gonna put you to the side for a second. (Laughs) I need to explore this.’ I did [live comedy festival] Netflix Is a Joke in April, and I had all this material — an hour and a half — and the set all blended, but it was bifurcated. So I decided to separate the two, and before I knew it, I had an hour in this Chris, Will and Jada thing.”

God Loves Me, Wayans’ third hour-long special, aired on March 2.