White Papers
2007 | 2006 | 2005
2007 White Paper:
“Entrepreneurial Opportunity & Human Dignity: The State of Black Enterprise in Birmingham,” by Dr. Stephen H. Craft, Chair of Business and Accounting at Birmingham-Southern College
Synopsis: What would Birmingham look like if Blacks reached economic parity in business – that is, Blacks owned businesses at a rate comparable to the community at large? The economic impact could be more than 43,000 new jobs and a $700 million increase in the area’s payroll, hypothetically. This paper explains why economic parity and wealth-building is vitally important for the Black community and the community as a whole, especially in today’s global economy. It also proposes further study of the issues surrounding economic parity and the need to cultivate Birmingham’s Black entrepreneurs.
Click here to download
2006 White Paper:
“Getting Birmingham’s Black Entrepreneurs Poised to Play a More Prominent Role in How Business is Done” by Dr. Vickie Cox Edmondson, Associate Professor of Management at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB)
Synopsis: Black entrepreneurs can gain a strong and effective voice in Birmingham’s business community. But first, they must do more to increase their stakeholder influence by improving their economic viability, increasing their visibility, and exercising their voice. Cooperation is a business imperative for Birmingham’s black-owned businesses to reach economic parity. This paper outlines ten influence-building strategies to build cooperative relationships among Black entrepreneurs, churches, colleges and universities, banks, government, and other stakeholders who want to stimulate and promote business, commercial, and job development in the Black community.
Click here to download
2005 White Paper:
“The 2005 State of Black Business In Birmingham” by Vickii Howell, Editor-In-Chief, Birmingham View Magazine
Synopsis: More than 50 years since the Supreme Court officially struck down separate but equal facilities, 40 years after federal authorities adopted voting rights and anti-discrimination laws, and 25 years of black political leadership, Birmingham is still behind in terms of economic empowerment for Black-owned businesses. At the time of the report, they generated less than half a percent of overall business revenues in the area’s economy. “Economic disparity is the clearest remaining vestige of racism,” said one person interviewed for this paper, which explores the relative lack of black-owned businesses in Birmingham and what can be done to address the issue.
Click here to download