Forbes - How We’re Vowing To Take On 2021

Plus: Forbes Favorites 2020: The Year’s Best Reads From For(bes) The Culture

“America / Pay attention / Wake up / This is not what you think it is” - Nas, “America”

The first full week of 2021 felt, for many, like 2020. While a surprise for some, it served as a confirmation for others that we continue to live in a very divided America.

On Wednesday, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were declared the winners of the Senate runoff elections in Georgia, through which Democrats took control of Congress. That same day, pro-Trump protestors stormed the U.S. Capitol building, demanding that Congress not certify the results of the presidential election. Some have drawn false comparisons between this insurrection and the peaceful Black Lives Matter protests that took place last year; others have questioned what the fate of these protestors would have been had they been Black.

Let’s learn from these events and build back better. For(bes) The Culture is looking to do just that: Join us on February 3 for our inaugural Culturally Accountable Summit, where we will identify the best strategies for a productive year for Black and Brown professionals and entrepreneurs whose productivity is often challenged by events like that which we just witnessed. And participate in our 2021 Black and Brown in Corporate survey, which will help inform how workplaces can create more inclusive, equitable environments. How are we vowing to take on 2021? With action. Much more to come!

News For The Culture

Forbes has partnered with Morehouse College to launch the Fellowship for Business Journalism, created to prepare and support aspiring journalists from historically Black colleges and universities pursuing a career in business journalism.

Black female-owned, allergy-friendly food brand Partake Foods closed a $4.8 million series A funding round in late December led by investors including Rihanna. More than 50% of Partake Foods’ total $7.5 million in funding has come from Black investors.

Kanarys, the first Black and female-founded diversity, equity and inclusion technology platform, is equipping 1,000 companies with the resources they need to create inclusive workplaces through its anonymous database.

Jackson State University and University of Kentucky have partnered with the Kentucky-based, NIH-funded healthcare accelerator XlerateHealth to create the EnRICH program, which will bolster and commercialize innovative healthcare ideas by students at historically Black colleges and universities.

"Data informs policy and policy informs funding. When you cut out data, you’re actually eliminating the possibility to help our communities."

Imani Rupert-Gordon

Executive Director, National Center for Lesbian Rights

Founders Finds From Rashaad Lambert and Vinasia Miles

• These Black Capitol Police Officers Describe Fighting Off "Racist-Ass Terrorists"

• Giuliani to Senator: ‘Try to Just Slow it Down’

• The Fall of Michael Tubbs

• Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris on the Road Ahead

• Mark My Words // Do You Need Vision? // Michael Todd

• ‘Just Do It’: Nike Invests $500k In Black Women Through Black Girl Ventures