SPECIAL REPORT: Who Will Help Black Businesses Amidst COVID-19?
By Doni Glover, Publisher
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(WASHINGTON - October 2, 2020) - "Printing has been in our family for several generations ... it's in our blood," says Time Printers' President, Al Maddox Jr. His grandfather, Gabriel B. Maddox Sr., under the guidance of Booker T. Washington, was the first instructor in printing and established the first printing shop at Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama. He then came to Baltimore from Augusta, Georgia. In 1907, he opened a small family-owned print shop that quickly became a cornerstone in Baltimore's business community.
Today, Maddox – like every other business owner in America – has too found his Black family-owned business faced with otherwise unforeseeable difficulties. Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year, conducting business has been a challenge for many entrepreneurs and business owners across America. In the Black business community, it has been particularly difficult for a number of reasons.
One major complaint is that Black businesses did not reap relief opportunities at the same level as their white counterparts in terms of government aid; some argue that by the time Black businesses got to the banks, the stimulus money was all gone. Other Black businesses simply did not want any loans nor any funding with strings attached, strings often buried in the fine print. Still, there were other Black business owners who did not have their tax records straight; therefore, they were not able to take advantage of available opportunities. And then, there were those businesses that simply closed, including those that primarily targeted indoor events.
Maddox personally believes that Black businesses are 10 times more disaffected.
In a recent Philadelphia Tribune article, "U.S. Black Chambers, Inc. president says Philadelphia Black-owned businesses need help" by Ayonna Jones, the national Black Chambers chief was quoted.
“Historically when we’ve talked about challenges for Black businesses and Black communities, the solutions have always been about minority and inclusion diversity programs,” U.S. Black Chambers, Inc. (USBC) President and CEO Ron Busby said during a webinar held on Tuesday by the Center City District.
“You can’t say that all boats are going to rise when you’re painting a broad brush because when you include diversity programs, it’s not hitting the businesses in the communities that have been hit the hardest. Black businesses were hit twice as hard as any other ethnic community in America so at this particular point in time, it has to be intentional. It can’t be about minority. It’s got to be about Black.”
On the other hand, there were indeed some Black businesses that haven’t skipped a beat. Some even benefitted from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program.
So, there are mixed responses.
“As the saying goes, when White America catches a cold, Black America catches pneumonia,” said Kenny Brown. Brown publishes a Black-owned newspaper in Northwest Baltimore County called The Northwest Voice.
Reaching some 15,000 readers in normal times, the COVID-19 pandemic has certainly disrupted his regular flow. He said that he’s been forced to cut-back on how many copies he prints, but that he’s optimistic he’ll soon be back in stride.
This is not to minimize the damage the pandemic has wreaked. Many businesses, Black and white, have had to close their doors. Yet, there is this general consensus nationally that while relief efforts have helped white businesses, Black businesses have not been so fortunate.
Both Maddox and Brown say that they have had to turn-on-the-dime and readjust their businesses’ strategies to focus on what works in the here and now. READ IN FULL