Black Ownership Is The Future Beyond DEI. These Are The Black Leaders Taking Matters Into Their Own Hands

In a speech at the American Black Film Festival Honors recently, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor so eloquently and passionately declared, “I don’t want a seat or a table. I want the structure. I want the land that the structure is on.” Ellis-Taylor’s message came right on time. Donald Trump has only been in office for a little over a month and he has already slashed public funding and intimidated private leaders into submission with his racist and sexist vision for America. Activists have responded by rightfully pushing political and corporate leaders to honor their commitments to racial justice as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion, but it has come at an exhausting price. There comes a point where people grow weary of sitting beneath someone else’s table begging for the bare minimum. To Ellis-Taylor’s point, instead of making demands of others who have only shown us empty promises, how can we take control and steer our own spaces and opportunities?

“We have to be the captains of our destiny and we know that Black leaders are building a future that we deserve,” says Alphonso David. David is the President and CEO of the Global Black Economic Forum (GBEF), an organization building economic power for Black people across the diaspora. The Global Black Economic Forum does this in many ways including partnerships with and programs serving HBCU students and Black entrepreneurs. GBEF is particularly unique in partnering with Black heads of state and economic leaders across almost every continent to ensure we understand and have access to the full range of opportunities, products, and services that can take us all higher. Lifting as they climb. “We have to break down barriers while also creating our own paradigms and seizing our own futures,” David says. 

Data shows that many are heeding David’s advice. The Brookings Institute recently released a study showing that Black-owned businesses are on a meteoric rise, with a more than 55% increase between 2017 and 2022 and have added $212 million in revenue to the economy. Ingrid Best, a wine négociant and art collector, has contributed to this data point having founded IBest Wines in 2023. “It’s crucial to create something that is unequivocally ours,” Best says. “My goal is to close the wealth gap through our work and I founded IBest Wines to show what’s possible when we pursue our dreams and build businesses sustainably.” Best leads a team entirely made up of Black women and, together, they have launched two award-winning South African blends. Agency and inclusivity have been key to their business strategy. 

“Innovation thrives when we challenge the status quo, and, for me, that meant highlighting underrepresented wine regions like South Africa,” says Best. “This vision, rooted in empowerment, creates sustainable opportunities for our communities even in the face of diversity, equity, and inclusion setbacks.” She’s not alone in this thinking. “Building our own tables allows us to set our own agenda without being tied to shifting corporate goalposts from those who only see our brilliance as fuel for their extractive business practices,” says Stephone Coward II. Coward is a financial activist and the Director of Economic Justice at Hip Hop Caucus, a cultural organizing space for Black people and voters to build towards a better America. For years, Coward has been championing what he calls “trauma-informed financial activism” recognizing that Black America is not economically underdeveloped but systematically exploited. “It’s important that we prioritize people over profit and consider the impact of our actions on generations to come,” Coward says.

Through their Bank Black and Green campaign, Hip Hop Caucus is shifting the flow of capital away from industries causing harm and proving that Black banks can be a model for justice paid in full. The Hip Hop Caucus team is working closely with Black-owned banks and securing commitments against investing in fossil fuels and mass incarceration, and funneling that money toward value-based impact investing. “I want people to see that we have the tools — and now is the time to use them,” says Coward. “By creating independent financial infrastructure and strengthening Black banks, we are building financial systems that can operate and thrive independently of mainstream corporate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives.”

Economics isn’t the only way we build autonomy. Krishan Trotman has taken the publishing industry by storm, even before the latest uptick in book bans and attacks on Black storytelling. In 2020, Trotman was the only Black editor in Hackett Book Group’s New York office. In the midst of a racial reckoning — and at a time when nearly 90% of traditionally-published authors were white — she decided to be the change and pitch an idea for an imprint dedicated to Black and diverse stories at Hachette. “My initial goal was simply to make a statement or have a vision documented in HR’s inbox if there ever were a miracle and someone asked for one,” Trotman said. To her surprise, the imprint was approved and Legacy Lit was born. “We didn’t build the table from scratch, but we pulled up, planted our feet, and made space for our voices.” 

Since its founding, Legacy Lit has printed dozens of books by Black authors including a New York Times bestseller on a Jim Crow asylum and a recount of Shirley Chisolm’s campaign for President — both books by first-time Black women authors. “We can’t solve every problem in our industry with one imprint,” Trotman admits, “but I want Legacy Lit to serve as an example of successful change.” In addition to publishing books, Trotman’s team at Legacy Lit also facilitates programming to engage readers who crave the stories that are becoming less and less accessible in other spaces. 

As we fight for economic autonomy and the ability to tell our own stories, it’s also deeply important that we rest and take care of ourselves. “We’ve spent decades — centuries — demanding a seat at tables that were never built for us, only to be met with performative gestures, shifting policies, and structural barriers that remain intact despite surface-level DEI initiatives,” says Dr. Lia Knox, a licensed professional counselor. This constant tug of war wears away at Black people over time and as Toni Morrison famously said, racism is a distraction that keeps us from doing our work. “Black Space HQ exists because we know healing and liberation happen when we are the architects of our own spaces,” Dr. Knox declares. “We are not waiting for approval, funding, or permission to prioritize Black mental wellness, innovation, and leadership. Instead, we are designing the rooms, setting the agenda, and ensuring our collective voices dictate the future.”

Through their curated healing spaces for Black leaders and culturally informed mental health interventions, Black Space HQ is building a world where Black people do not have to sacrifice their mental health, authenticity, or dignity to thrive in corporate spaces, entrepreneurship, or leadership. This holistic support is more needed than ever as Black leaders are becoming burnt out by the status quo. “Black women in particular have become fed up by companies not providing products or services based on our specific needs,” says Rachel Noerdlinger. Noerdlinger is the first Black female equity partner at a global consulting firm and has seen this play out up close in her day-to-day work as a crisis manager and brand strategist. “I fought for this when I advised the Fearless Fund during the lawsuit they faced,” says Noerdlinger. “These Black women deserve their shot at the American Dream.” Though we have experienced many setbacks, Noerdlinger has witnessed the DEI rollbacks motivate Black Americans to fight back with their dollars. “There’s real momentum in Black America to use their buying power —which is expected to reach $1.98 trillion this year — to take a stand and I think that’s incredibly powerful.”

With these leaders at the helm, the future doesn’t feel quite so bleak. Yes we are still up against a lot but we are not helpless. There are countless hidden figures pushing for Black ownership and autonomy. Who are resisting a world where our dignity and safety is a pawn moved around a chess board by those who only see us as a bargaining tool. We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for and if you want to see these aforementioned visions come to life, don’t wait. Follow, donate to, and amplify these prolific visionaries now.