the most important data resource on African-Americans in the economy

Sanders takes Garvey, Mitchell to Africities; Bradford and California Legislative Black Caucus bring reparations to the public discourse

BMWorldwide–SAN FRANCISCO–Sen. James Sanders, D-Queens, is leading a delegation from the National Black Caucus of State Legislators to the 8,000 attendee Africities May 18 in Kisimu, Kenya.
Sanders told the unveiling of Down But Not Out: State of Black Business, 19th edition on Saturday, May 14 that “The African world must trade with each other.”
He’s taking NBCSL President Rep. Billy Mitchell of Georgia and Dr. Julius Garvey, son of Marcus Garvey, on the trip with him to meet with their regional and local counterparts from 54 countries.
Sen. Steven Bradford, Chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus, joined Sanders for the annual unveiling.
Bradford noted that the California Reparations Task Force is about to issue its first interim report, the first ever by any state government.
“We had a lot of support from NBCSL on that legislation by Dr. Shirley Weber in 2020,” said Bradford.
The Gardena senator also noted that Weber is on the ballot in June for election as California secretary of state along with Tony Thurmond, superintendent of public instruction, Rep. Karen Bass for mayor of Los Angeles and Malia Cohen for state controller.
Sanders, the father of MBWE legislation in New York City and State, noted that African-Americans lead both houses of the New York legislature and hold the lieutenant governor and attorney general posts along with the mayoralty of New York City.
“If we can’t make a difference now, I don’t know when we can,” said Sanders.
California and New York were cited as the top two states in the Black Business Affinity Index in Down But Not Out: State of Black Business, 19th edition.
Each state is rated on the Ten Key Factors for Black Business Success.
The report also tracks the progress of 90 federal agencies to meet the day one executive order of President Joseph Biden, including procurement with Black-owned businesses.

Former Genentech Treasurer tells how his passion for art and wine meets the marketplace

BMWorldwide–San Francisco–Thomas T. Thomas saw his 20 year dream of creating high quality wines run right into a global pandemic in 2020 like 70 percent of Black employer businesses that lost sales as the illness spread globally. But this summer, he’s being featured in Wine Enthusiast with wines rated among the top five percent in the world. He described buying land in the Anderson Valley of Mendecino in 2003 that was completely barren; planting grapes in 2008 and producing his own wine for the first time in 2017. But visitors to thomastthomasvineyard.com will be satisfied with the result. Thomas is also returning to his original expertise as chief financial officer of a startup biotech company. He had spent 12 years with Genentech, rising to corporate treasurer. The other interest he has pursued is art, exhibiting in major galleries and designing his own bottle art.

Fairness in Health pioneers May 21 during How to Do Equity

BMWorldwide–SAN FRANCISCO–Three courageous advocates for African-American health lead the fifth session of How to Do Equity on Fairness in Health on May 21 at 1 p.m. Pacific.

Crystal James, Esq. (top right), Dr. Ahimsa Sumchai (top left) and Dr. Reynold Verrett (right) are on the front lines of the most vulnerable populations in the United States as the Dr. T. Nathaniel Burbridge Center for Inclusive Innovation explores the Science of Fairness during eight sessions through June 11. James is the director of the Center for Rural Health and Economic Development at Tuskegee University; and director of graduate public health; Dr. Sumchai was recently named alumna of the year by UC-San Francisco for her decades of research into radiation impacts for African-Americans in the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood and Dr. Verrett, president of Xavier University in New Orleans, just announced plans to create the first new medical school at a historically Black college and university since 1981.

The objective of the Burbridge Center is to increase the number of African-American health practitioners and to leverage their talents into life science businesses that anchor healthy Black communities. Its namesake, Dr. T. Nathaniel Burbridge was the first Black medical faculty tenured in California, and also president of the San Francisco NAACP during the United San Francisco Freedom Movement from 1963 to 1965.

Big Six member recalls the 1960s

Wil T. Ussery describes the Children's Crusade, United San Francisco Freedom Movement and Mobilization Commitee for the Liberation of Southern Africa

He was a draftsman who worked for a top architectural firm, but after seeing the images of demonstrators bloodied in the South, Wil T. Ussery became the local and then national chair of the Congress of Racial Equality. In 1968, he travelled to Khartoum, Sudan for the first meeting of the Mobilization Committee for the Liberation of Southern Africa and was named co-chair with Dr. Eduardo Mondlane. This group was the umbrella for the 30 year effort to free Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa.