JANUARY 2023: FRONTPAGE NOTE: A Reflection for MLK Day
January 12, 2023
The Black dollar has long been at the forefront of creating equity. When the Black economy thrives, the Black community follows suit. At PAGE, we know that building our diverse businesses is a necessity, which is why we maintain our focus in bringing resources and opportunity to Greater Philadelphia’s diverse business community.
With Martin Luther King Day quickly approaching, we will witness a flood of references to MLK’s “I Have A Dream” speech. While King was instrumental in organizing African Americans to fight for political equality and voting rights, his views on economic equity were just as important. The sit-ins at lunch counters, the Montgomery bus boycott, and many other tactics were essentially flexing Black economic muscle to achieve political and social ends. He and Philadelphia leaders like the “Lion of Zion,” Reverend Leon Sullivan, and Cecil B. Moore understood that the Black dollar could wield enormous power. Yet nearly 60 years after the March on Washington – a march for “jobs and freedom” – Black economic opportunity still lags.
This sobering recognition animates the work of PAGE and makes it even more urgent.
Black businesses and their success give way to an employed Black population which in turn leads to the support of the community ecosystem as a whole. The cyclical nature of this paradigm means that one of these pieces cannot fail, but since the emergence of COVID-19, the Black business community has taken a significant hit. PAGE is working to bring diverse businesses out of this slump and protect their ability to keep the community healthy. The development will happen from the inside out.
PAGE is the product of a broad and deep coalition of leaders in government, education, and, most importantly business. These leaders know that the support for the community will come from a healthy business community. MLK’s call to action will ring endlessly, and PAGE is undoubtedly an echo of it. Let’s put our shoulders to the wheel with twice as much resolve in 2023.
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY OF SERVICE
JANUARY 13TH 2023
The Economy League's Well City Challenge will be represented at the 28th Annual Greater Philadelphia MLK Day of Service event this Monday, January 16th.