Beyoncé And NAACP Partner To Help Fund Black-Owned Businesses
Pop culture icon Beyoncé has been busy. She’s just wrapped up directing and executive producing the visual album Black Is King, which premieres globally on July 31, one year after the release of Disney’s The Lion King in which she voiced the character Nala. But being at the peak of her career has not stopped Beyoncé from giving back to her community amid an ongoing coronavirus pandemic and a Black Lives Matter movement.
In April, Beyoncé and the BeyGOOD foundation partnered with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s #startsmall initiative to donate $6 million to community-based organizations in need during Covid-19. That same month, she worked with rapper Megan Thee Stallion to release a remix to Stallion’s hit song Savage, with proceeds going directly to Houston non-profits supporting underserved communities during the pandemic. In May, she collaborated with her mother, Tina Knowles-Lawson to create the #IDIDMYPART campaign that’s continuing to encourage Black and brown residents nationwide to seek free COVID-19 testing.
Most recently, Beyoncé and BeyGOOD have partnered with the NAACP to launch the Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund, which will provide $10,000 grants to Black-owned companies in select cities “to help strengthen small businesses and to ensure economic empowerment for Black businesses,” as stated on the NAACP website.
“The challenges of Black business owners navigating in the climate cannot be understated, as the effects of uprisings across the nation have led to many businesses being placed in dire straits due to damages and other small business needs,” the statement reads.
Eligible business owners must live in Houston, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles or Minneapolis and indicate estimated expenses incurred as a result of property losses or inventory replacement on their application. Applicants have until July 18, 2020 to apply. Selected business owners will be notified on Beyonce.com on July 31.
Photo Source: JOEL C RYAN/INVISION/AP
