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The National Business League & National Black Chamber of Commerce to Make Historic Announcement at National Press Club
Nations Two Oldest and Largest Black Business Organizations Host State of Black Business Luncheon

(Washington, D.C.) - The National Business League (NBL) and the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) are joining forces as the nation’s oldest and largest Black business organizations to make a historic announcement during the State of Black Business Luncheon at the National Press Club on September 27. This announcement challenges the disproportionate economic impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has on Black businesses, the unresolved effects of racial unrest, and the largely failed Black equity campaigns promoted by Fortune 500 companies.

The luncheon will host some of America's top Black business professionals, international representatives, and executive leadership from the public and private sectors of the federal government, to be a part of the historic announcement and witness the State of Black Business panel discussion featuring Charles H. DeBow III, President and CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Kenneth L. Harris, President and CEO of the National Business League, and Eugene Cornelius, Jr., Senior Director of the Center for Regional Economics at the Milken Institute.

"Our mission at the NBCC describes the heart of our work: to economically empower and sustain Black communities through entrepreneurship and capitalistic activity within the United States. For the NBCC to expand this work, it is critical in today’s climate of 'divide and conquer' to collaborate with organizations like the NBL, who share and understand our mission and can collectively bring new perspectives and fresh ideas to the table, " said Charles H. DeBow III.

The NBL and NBCC highlight that Black businesses continue to be marginalized, isolated, and disconnected from the economic mainstream of society. Although attempts have been made to bring awareness to the disparities within Black businesses, most corporate, public, and private sector efforts struggle to produce measurable results for the more than 3.2M Black-owned businesses in America.

"Living in a pandemic economy, Black businesses still find themselves at the bottom of the economic stratification despite fighting for the civil liberties that minority, ethnic, and gender groups benefit from today. Advocacy is a team sport, and now more than ever, it is important for national Black organizations to collaborate on achieving the economic progress that has yet to be realized, " said Dr. Kenneth L. Harris.

If you are a media outlet and would like to cover the event, please contact Darian Shorts at [email protected]

About The National Business League
The National Business League is the first and largest, independent, not-for-profit, trade association for Black-owned businesses and professionals in the United States of America, founded by Dr. Booker T. Washington on August 23, 1900, headquartered in Washington, D.C. The NBL has 120,000 members nationwide and manages local chapters throughout all 50m states and internationally. Celebrating 122 years of service, the NBL is a proud partner to more than 125 Fortune 500 companies, public and private sector organizations worldwide. Learn more about NBL here.

About the National Black Chamber of Commerce
Empowering the Black Business Community for 30 Years, the National Black Chamber of Commerce® is the largest Black business association in the world and is dedicated to economically empowering and sustaining African American communities through entrepreneurship and capitalistic activity within the United States. Headquartered in Washington, DC, NBCC was founded in 1992 by Harry Alford and Kay DeBow. Today the organization has 200+ chambers across 40 states and 50 nations. Learn more about NBCC here.

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