What keeps us from supporting a Black-owned business? What is it that we have reservations about?

I get excited and look forward to spending money with individuals that look like me. Why don’t more of us share that sentiment? We’ve all shopped at places we hate walking into because of not only their ridiculously long lines but also because some of us know that we’re guilty of giving our money to people that don’t give a damn about us or our kind. That’s not a good feeling, especially for some of us that take the overall freedom and prosperity of his/her people very seriously.

I am proud to say that I am one of those people that take seriously the spending/circulating of Black dollars with Black-owned businesses. In fact, I’ve rolled out my own small Black-owned business called BLKxLIGHT. The sole purpose of my company is to create clothing for us by us that inspires, enlightens, and illuminates ALL things positive and ALL things Black. I also look to use my platform to educate and empower people of color. BLKXLIGHT's first shirt was designed and printed in November of 2016.

I created a store on WeBuyBlack.com and shared the website on Facebook. I asked that my followers and friends share the link to my online store. I'm sure we all know the feeling of posting something, asking our friends and such to “share” the link and instead they simply “Like” it. Yet, they'll watch and share videos that are filled with filth and damaging images portraying Blacks as savages.

I posted the link on my personal FaceBook page and shared it on the BLKxLIGHT page myself. That was the only share I received. Needless to say, I felt some kind of way about that.

I am committed to ‘sharing’ online and offline with my people; supporting and encouraging my people; protesting and boycotting with my people; fighting and standing with my people regularly. It’s disheartening as hell, though, that with me doing all these things for my people, there are not enough of us willing to do the same in return. Now if a McDonald’s or a Wal-Mart or a Chic-Fil-A asked us to share or like a link, we break our necks to share, post, call, support and all for those organizations that have known histories of not giving a damn about "minority" groups.

Call me sensitive or whatever you would like. I do not believe in beginning a process if I do not have true intentions to see it through. I do believe we have a lot to learn when it comes to the power of doing for self, and supporting each other and each other’s idea/ventures. I also believe we have the ability to wake up from this centuries-long hypnotic state we’ve been in and actually move toward opening more of our own businesses that are for us and actually have our best interest at heart.

I’m confident we can and will soon see the power we hold and have been holding. It is difficult to recognize the power within yourself, though, when you have on a blindfold; chains around your neck, brain and ankles; and have been told the biggest lies known to man for centuries.

What moves can we make that will continue to raise our people from this sleep/sheep state we're in? What more will it take for our people to "get it"? What more can be done?

Please chime in. Like our brother Barack Obama famously said, "We are the ones we've been waiting for."

JonesJesseD

Writing since December 2017 · 1 story contributed