This is Week One
Adebukola.com Statement on Civil Unrest
This is Week One
Just a week ago, I would not have imagined we would be here. But I’m also not surprised. Black people have been under attack for 400 years and counting. We are back again saying, “enough is enough.” In the past 30 days, during a global pandemic, multiple Black people have been unjustly murdered by police officers and white civilians. This is and has always been unacceptable.
A week ago today, George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, was murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. The video of Floyd’s brutal murder, as a result of Chauvin kneeing his neck and suffocating him, along with other officers, who have not been named.
As a Black educator, I’m frustrated and appalled at the lack of information and history that the average person knows. As a Black marketer, I am saddened by the silence and/or indifference of companies and brands across all industries. As a Black writer, I’m exhausted to put my pen to paper, yet again, to tell the stories that are predestined to go unheard.
This is week one. We are on a long and slow journey to receive justice.
We need justice.
The State of Black-Owned Businesses
It is problematic that over the past 6 days, Black-owned businesses have been under attack by white infiltrators manipulating peaceful protesters by destroying their property and looting. Over 100,000 small businesses shut down due to COVID-19. Forty percent of Black business workers are unemployed and struggling to make ends meet.
Our collective bottom lines, as a result, have steepened.
As a platform educating small businesses, specifically Black-owned, we will continue to offer support and resources including job postings, the latest tools in digital, and grant opportunities.
We Stand in Solidarity
In order to protect ourselves from the COVID-19 outbreak, we are not able to partake in the protests happening in the cities For All Things Digital members are based in. This includes Atlanta, Boston, New York, and L.A. We are heartbroken at the senseless and brutal murders that are too familiar to us.
We offer a digital memorial for those who were taken away from us too soon. We send love to their families. We cry with them. We mourn. We hurt. We are outraged.
Our Programming Moving Forward
We have postponed all programming and scheduled content, including our new ebook, Brand Storytelling Workbook. We will continue to utilize our platform to follow current events in real time.
We want to take this opportunity to thank all of our readers. We love and cherish you, your life matters.
-Adebukola 🙏🏾