Building Our Communities

It Takes a Village

In order for the mission of the Black Owned Business Funding Network to be accomplished, there are 10 things we first as a people need to realize and accept:  

1. 1. When your people were taken into captivity and sold into slavery from the country/countries in which you resided, you were separated as a people and sent to destinations in Brazil,Peru, Argentina, Central America,The West Indies, the British Colonies in America and many other countries. Although you were separated and now reside in different countries and speak different languages you are the same people and were once a nation.  You were separated.
2. 2. When arriving in the United States as slaves you were stripped of and restricted from your education, culture, religion, name, heritage, and children.  Your families were constantly disrupted by being sold and transported to to other plantations and even death.  When arriving at these plantations you were further separated by job, value and even look.  You were made to breed children that would be sold like puppies or cattle.  You were separated even more.
3. 3. After "freeing" your people from almost 300 years of slavery they were pretty much thrown out on the streets with absolutely nothing.  No homes, no land, no clothes, no food.  Just a you're free off you go.  They then began targeting your people for jails and prisons to re-enlist you into their free labor system.  An example of this targeting is:  Making it illegal to not have a home or residence or consistent employment (vagrancy)... After throwing your people on the streets.  This kind of targeting put many black people in jails and prison free labor systems for years further separating them from their people and their families.  Black churches and black organizations were targeted for violence such as bombings, shootings, burnings, lynchings, and arrests.  These practices were implemented to keep blacks out of political processes, to keep them under subjugation and oppression as well as to keep them from banding together as a people. You were kept separate.
4. 4. From 1865 to 1965 there was no proper quality education for black people within the United States. Segregation kept those who were thrown out in the streets with nothing with pretty much what they had; which was nothing.  They were poor, uneducated, oppressed, targeted for jail and free labor systems, and met with violence when they tried to ban together.  Although the civil rights movement in the 1960s opened up new doors and opportunities for blacks in the United States as well as outlawed a lot of the targeted practices aimed towards blacks; there were still (and still are) discriminatory practices that did not allow for the progression of black people within the United States.  
5. 5. Blacks have parents who were born in the 1960's during the civil rights era and desegregation and given access to better education and resources.  Those children born in the 1960's had parents or grandparents who were once slaves and then thrown on the street with nothing.  These parents and grandparents could only give to their children and grandchildren what they were able to accumulate after being thrown on the streets with nothing and earning what they could under harsh and oppressive circumstances.  
6. 6.There are other races who have parents who were born in the 1960's whose parents and grandparents had homes, businesses, and wealth that was built off the free labor of slaves as well as their free labor system.  Some of these parents and grandparents "owned" the parents and grandparents of black children who were born in the 1960's and are responsible for putting their parents and grandparents on the streets with nothing, after building their homes and businesses for almost 300 years with no compensation or recourse.  These parents and grandparents were able to take their homes, businesses and wealth they were able to accumulate from the labor of the slaves they threw out on the street, and pass it to their children and grandchildren.  
7. 7. Resources that have been passed down from generation to generation within other races family lines and communities have enabled these people to: provide quality education for their children without debt, provide homes, financial support, and stability for their children, they've been able to provide vital research and development within their communities, businesses, services, and products that allows for the continued growth and development of their people, and allowed for those that continue to hold the wealth and resources to be able to control those who are in need of those resources.     
8. 8. Blacks have not had access to nor been able to pass down many of these vital resources.  In fact the education received is attached to debt because many can not afford to outright pay for it.  Homes are attached to mortgages and debt.  Huge debt within the black communities and families do not allow for the financial support and stability of their children and grandchildren.  The lack of finances and resources within the black communities and families has not allowed for proper research and development within their communities, businesses, services, products and people.  This lack of research and development has led to poor education, poor business practices, disease, illness, heightened aggression, and had generally kept the black communities on a downward slope or in the same positions.  
9. 9. You make the millionaires and celebrities within your communities.  Beyonce and Jay-Z are not millionaires because millions of dollars popped up in their accounts.  Every ticket you have purchased to go to their concerts placed money in their pocket.  Every CD you purchased, every single you purchased every video you streamed, every piece of clothing you purchased that they designed put money in their pockets.  They used that money to grow and develop products and services for you to purchase even more.  Sponsors and advertisers begin to pay them because of their ability to get you to spend and buy into them.  Stop saying "well what are these black celebrities and black millionaires doing for us" when it is your money and focus that is making them the millionaires and celebrities.  Instead of fueling resources into making celebrities millionaires for entertaining you, fuel those same resources into people with the vision and goal of building and developing you, your communities and your people.   
10. 10.  There are peoples, nations, tribes and races all over the world who thrive, develop, and grow because of the importance of the survival of their people is to them.  Although they may love and have love for people of other races, tribes and nationalities; they are still aware that in order for their people to survive and sustain they must love, support and take care of one another helping to equip and make the next generation better.  Passing down wisdom, knowledge, education. resources, businesses, homes, land and more to the next generation allowing the continued growth and development of their people.

Gather Together in Unity

To sum these 10 things up:  You were separated, your families were broken, you were without education or support and  you built many homes and businesses as well as labored within them for almost 300 years with no pay or recourse.  You were also put on the streets without anything and told to pull yourself up by the bootstraps, and you were targeted oppressed and thrown in jail for being poor and uneducated (talk about kicking you while you're down) for another 100 - 150 years after that.  You were discriminated against, targeted for violence, your organizing and places of gathering were blown up, you had no peace or equality and no time or resources to research and develop yourselves as a people.  

You've worked very hard under harsh oppressive conditions to get where you are as a people today.  Whereas you were once poor uneducated slaves, you are now doctors, lawyers, biologists, scientists, professional athletes, and even a former president of the United States.  We are educated and now make wages for our labor. If we love and care about our people just as much as others across the world cares about their people; we need to start building, developing, and providing resources into our people and their infrastructure.  Movies, sports and entertainment is great: but we as a people have more entertainers and celebrities as millionaires than we do businessmen, entrepreneurs and innovators.  The average cost of a movie ticket is around $10. There are around 43 million blacks in the United States. if 10% (4.3 million) of the black population buys a movie ticket. $43,000,000 just went into that movie.  Imagine what that would do if it was put into black businesses, entrepreneurs, or ventures that provide jobs, services and vital research and development within the black communities.  Research and development such as: why are blacks dying early from things like diabetes, high blood pressure etc.  what are the proper foods we as a people should be eating, business planning and development, family planning and development, community planning and development, land ownership,, law and more.  Even if only 30% of the black population bought that ticket it would still provide $129,000,000 of resources.

As a people everything you touch turns to gold.  Whether it is music, sports, politics, entertainment, and even this country did not grow to what it is until you touched it.  You are a special people. Touch this network, because it was built for you and watch this network and your people turn to gold!