Sponsored by the Greater New England 
Minority Supplier Development Council

Black businesses lag behind businesses of all other racial groups in every measure of success. Is it necessary – or even possible – for the black community to sustain its own economy? Author Maggie Anderson shares her highly-publicized year-long journey completely living off Black businesses, called The Empowerment Experiment, and how she encountered a community that refused to support its own, an economy that had Black businesses wholly disenfranchised, and virulent criticism from those outside the Black community who called her a racist. Meanwhile, sociology professor Thomas Shapiro warns that blacks are failing in asset accumulation and homeownership, to the point of negating gains in employment and income. Drawing on economic research, social history, surveys, interviews, and their own personal experiences, these authors show moderator Candelaria Silva how racial inequality is transmitted across generations and pinpoint why the black economy continues to suffer.

At the end of the event, the speakers will be signing and selling copies of their books, “Our Black Year: One Family’s Request to Buy Black in America’s Racially Divided Economy” by Maggie Anderson, and “The Hidden Cost of Being African American: How Wealth Perpetuates Inequality” by Thomas Shapiro.

Thursday, October 4, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Modern Theatre, Suffolk University

Ford Hall Forum