Detroit Change Maker: Hajj Flemings Shares His Story

“Change Makers Make Change...While Others Wait For It.” - Hajj Flemings

My name is Hajj Flemings. I am a Father. A Husband. A Son. A Brand Strategist. A Social Entrepreneur. An Author. An eSports Investor. A Global Citizen. The founder of Rebrand Cities and Brand Camp University. I am passionate about helping cities and small businesses eradicate the digital divide. I am a Black man who is a changemaker for the city of Detroit, MI. 

I was one of eight entrepreneurs selected for CNN's Black in America 4: The New Promised Land: Silicon Valley documentary with Soledad O’Brien which was viewed by over 1 million people. During the filming of that documentary, I began to understand the real meaning of the term ‘meritocracy’ and recognized that lack of access in the technology space was creating a permanent underclass in communities of color. That experience literally changed the course of my life and helped me to identify my life’s work.

As a Black social entrepreneur in Detroit, MI, I have faced numerous challenges that have driven me to be the change that I want to see. Through my desire to improve my hometown, I created Rebrand Cities, a global civic design initiative with the audacious goal to get 10,000 businesses online and eradicate the digital divide. It has since expanded to nine cities and two countries. Including Detroit, Miami, Chicago, Boston, Memphis, Los Angeles, Mesa (AZ), Newark and Port-Au-Prince (Haiti).

As much as I love working with Fortune 500 companies, traveling the world and seeing people get their businesses off the ground, none of this would be possible without family. My beautiful wife Kasandra of 15+ years and our 9 year old daughter drive my daily grind. As a girl dad, I know the importance of showing her that her destination in life is only limited by her imagination. Being a changemaker for the world, starts by being a changemaker at home, by showing love and respect for our Black friends, co-workers, family members, and even complete strangers.

My motto is and will always be “Family First”. My family fuels me to go out and care for my community, to play my part within this changing world. On Father’s Day - June 21, 2020, Kennedy and I were featured on Instagram for Cadillac U.S. and Cadillac Canada (see below).

My great grandfather, Keifer Patterson, a husband and father of five kids drove his family from Georgia to Roseville, Michigan in search of a new life. They lived in a tent while he built his family a home with a grocery store next door. Why a grocery store (you ask) because he had a vision. During the winter months, he would go to Florida and California to work as a plaster contractor. He built the store so his family could sustain themselves while he worked down south. This is where I get my entrepreneurial drive. He did all this in the 1940’s with a 3rd grade education and his vehicle of choice was exclusively Cadillac.

With my great grandfather’s influence, I worked as a Quality Engineer for GM in the late 1990’s at the GM Tech Center in Warren, MI and later worked with GM’s aftermarket department conducting branding workshops for their team.   

Thank you for promoting Black role models and supporting the change the world needs. 

Thank you, Cadillac, for standing with us.