Marshawn Wolley

What I appreciate most about … Juneteenth is that the Black community collectively celebrates the day slavery ended for all Black people.

Whatever the brave new world is shouldn’t undermine candidates who lack means and connections in the process.

Collecting race data on business lending is more of an investment in an underserved market than a cost.

Progress is hard, and we’ve learned a lot.

“How does one teach about American chattel slavery, Reconstruction and Jim Crow without talking about racism?”

These unique times present an opportunity to help landlords identify otherwise good tenants who fell on tough times.

Equitable lending to Black businesses could be one of the most significant economic development strategies the region can implement.

The current discussion on CRT seems designed to shut down an emerging conversation on diversity, equity and inclusion.

We’ve been here before, but if we embrace the necessity for change and accountability, it can be different this time.

“After all, not being racist isn’t the same as being anti-racist.”

It’s also important to recognize quiet-but-emerging powerhouses in the Black community.

After the relationship between the Black community and the police sparked riots across the country, one might think some legislators would have taken the time to listen to Black people.

All business owners are problem-solvers, and Black business owners are no different.

While folks might get an A for effort, the results of diversity and inclusion initiatives have been a failure benefitting almost everyone except Blacks.

We know everyone has implicit bias—which raises the challenge of figuring out how to manage it in order to arrive at bias-free decisions.

Progress is fragile, elusive and agonizing in its distance, and many aspects of police reform remain unfinished.

We also know that, in the aggregate, congressional districts with higher Black populations received less PPP funding than congressional districts with lower Black populations.

State officials are just as responsible as local government for the development of systemic racism in Indianapolis over time.

Dr. Woody Myers faces an uphill battle, but I think Hoosiers will appreciate the option for change—maybe small businesses might even benefit from some progress Myers could bring. We can already see potential contrasts.