When: Wednesday, February 16, 2022, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. EST
Online only: https://www.brookings.edu/events/state-of-black-businesses-resilience-in-the-face-of-a-pandemic/
What: While the pandemic has disproportionately hurt preexisting Black businesses – facing steeper declines in sales and a harder time accessing capital that their white counterparts – it has also spurred the creation of new Black firms, according to a 2021 report published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, particularly a surge of new online microbusiness. However, structural changes are needed at the federal, state, and local level to sustain and build on this newfound growth.
On Wednesday, February 16, Brookings Metro will host an event assessing the state of Black businesses in metropolitan areas across the country, in collaboration with the Path to 15|55 initiative, which endeavors to grow the percentage of Black-owned employer firms. Senior Fellow Andre Perry will show findings from a forthcoming Brookings report, “How to expand Black-owned businesses in cities during the pandemic”, and an expert panel will explore policy solutions that can build upon the recent rise of small, Black-owned firms and make structural changes that will enable the economy to work for entrepreneurs of all races
Viewers can submit questions via email to events@brookings.edu or on Twitter @BrookingsMetro using #BlackBusinesses.