Minorities and Entrepreneurship

[Cognition]

Should entrepreneurship be emphasized in minority groups, primarily African American males?

I ran across this highly discouraging, yet informative article last week and forwarded to colleagues of mine.

Take a look: Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Study: Black man and white felon - same chances for hire « - Blogs from CNN.com

If it's mostly educated, qualified African American males who are bypassed by employers on account of their race, should entrepreneurship be heavily emphasized?

Thoughts?

[jasaunders]

I'm probably not qualified to comment on your question specifically, but two things come to mind:

1) Minorities who face discrimination in the workplace are probably likely to some degree to face some level of discrimination in business as well, even if they own their own firm. The challenges shift in some respect from obtaining a job from a prejudiced manager/owner/boss to attracting customers and working with suppliers; some of whom may have the same prejudice.

2) I believe entrepreneurship is an important skill and one that can provide significant benefit particularly to the underpriveleged, which in major urban areas disproportionately affects minorities. I believe the Urban League is one such organization that works to help specifically African-Americans in this respect. I have personal knowledge of the programs at the Chicago Urban League and specifically their Entrepreneurship Center, and I have seen it help numerous disadvantaged youths in Chicago communities who take classes after school with the Urban League. In my interaction with several of these students through a nonprofit I work with, I have heard nothing but good things about the Urban League's Entrepreneurship Center and the many programs and events they have.

[Cognition]

1) Minorities who face discrimination in the workplace are probably likely to some degree to face some level of discrimination in business as well, even if they own their own firm. The challenges shift in some respect from obtaining a job from a prejudiced manager/owner/boss to attracting customers and working with suppliers; some of whom may have the same prejudice.

Good point you make, J. So, are minorities, in essence, "screwed"? While I'm clearly not advocating qualified, educated black males to seek employment, I am saying that the odds are against them.

What about entrepreneurial ventures that will not involve the identification of their race/skin color, etc?

[jasaunders]

I don't think that minorities are screwed. For one thing, there are many government and NGO programs that specifically target minorities by providing extra assistance and incentives to minority owned businesses. If I was a minority business owner, I would be sure to take advantage of such programs where they exist.

My personal belief is that there are added challenges and obstacles that may need to be overcome, but these are attainable. I would definitely not say minorities are screwed. The odds against black males may be longer in many instances, but that doesn't mean they can't be overcome. A lot of other groups that aren't necessarily considered minorities (based on race) face discrimination as well and have to overcome the challenges to succeed; these groups being based on sexuality, religion, national origin, etc... As far as I know there are no programs that give preference of government contracts to gays, but I am sure many gay people face discrimination in running their own businesses as well.

My point being, that many people start with a disadvantage and may have to work that much harder just to overcome obstacles that maybe others don't have in their way. But everything is attainable if we try hard enough.

[CIsaac]

Yeah I think it that entrepreneurship should definitely be emphasized within minority groups. Sadly there will always be the stereotypes even with owning a business; the bright side is that an entrepreneur can always hire people to be the face of their business if they can afford it. See, in the working world, people get what they see. In the business world, you can make them think that.

Another thing is that someone of a minority group can also have clients from their ethnic makeup who form a majority of their business. In the corporate world, you don't have that choice.

[byzantium]

I have a form of autism, so I count myself among those minorities who have a hard time getting hired-the disabled have over 80% unemployment, and only a couple percent of the neurologically or mentally impaired (no visible disability, unlike someone without legs for example) have gainful employment. After I failed to find work, I decided to start my own business. It's almost ready.

One thing a minority can do is start an internet based business, so your customers never have to know that you're "different". Another thing is that birds of a feather flock together, and most HR managers in the Big Corporate world are hip, young, and white, so if you're not, they won't hire you. But if you're Black or Latino and your business is dedicated to helping your local community by hiring from it, then your employees will be a lot like you. It's a win-win.

It's important to have a little management theory under your belt, so you understand that today's work world is the "collegial environment" where who you are is more important than what you know. The corporate world is lily white, and is largely made up of the children of the white upper middle class. They have the same tastes, the same backgrounds, the same schools in most cases, and are pretty much interchangeable. Now if you understand that this is part of the collegial work environment, and you don't fit the mold, you go start your own business and hire people from the urban core, or the farm fields, or whatever. Turnabout is fair play.

If you're asking that, in light of this, do minorities need to be entrepreneurs, well absolutely, because who else is gonna hire your people? The young white party crowd at MegaCorp sure won't, they've been told their whole lives that you're somebody to be afraid of. You may want to read up on Homeboy Industries. It was started by a young Mexican immigrant from East LA who couldn't find work until he realized what I just wrote. So he started a business (a print shop, I think) with the goal of employing his friends. Now he's rich, and the whites are flocking to shower him with praise.

[teenbizcoach]

As a teen entrepreneur coach, I work with young entrepreneurs (ALL teenagers across ethnicities...currently I work with all males and 1 female) and nearly 100% have overcome some tremendous hardships: struggled in school, lived in transient situations/foster homes or have an incarcerated or deceased parent. Yet my most successful entrepreneurs are doing gross revenues that are their combined household incomes; landing paid internships and freelance consulting gigs while still in high school; are having success in public speaking (inc emceeing large high $$$ events and fundraisers); and my older teens are first year university students. At the time I started working with them some would have labeled them potential juvenile offenders or high school dropouts....yet another set of crazy statistics. So I always work hard to encourage 'my kids' to run to something and not from something and along the way "openly share their story".

Reality is good things happen to everyone and bad things happen to everyone. So they need to learn how to work it out and keep it moving. If they focus on being the victim and always losing the battle, then in fact they already have.

Needless to say, 'Entrepreneurship Education' should be emphasized for ALL individuals- informal or formal doesn't matter. Because having an entrepreneurial mindset is not a different way of thinking, but in fact the only way of thinking. Regardless of whether you work for yourself or someone else being able to think independently and resourcefully like an entrepreneur directly affects your ultimate quality of life including academic, social and community.

[Cognition]

One thing a minority can do is start an internet based business, so your customers never have to know that you're "different".

Another thing is that birds of a feather flock together, and most HR managers in the Big Corporate world are hip, young, and white, so if you're not, they won't hire you.

If you're asking that, in light of this, do minorities need to be entrepreneurs, well absolutely, because who else is gonna hire your people? The young white party crowd at MegaCorp sure won't, they've been told their whole lives that you're somebody to be afraid of. [/QUOTE]

Yes, these points are very true, in light of my own experiences.

As for African Americans, I suggest a different, non-traditional route to acquiring consistent income. I recommend applying for legitimate work-from-home employment, contractual employment (where you work for a firm that sends you to various clients), or online entrepreneurship.

If you don't want to do any of those, I suggest finding an employer who has a reputation for being accepting of minority workers.

[Iamnotsatisfied]

It does not happen everytime, but there are those occasions when a black man's job application got declined over a white man with less qualifications because they think that they will fit easier within their corporation.

In addition; again this does not happen all the time, but sometimes a black entrepreneur will have a hard time trying to get a startup loan, just because he is black. These banks might automatically think that the business will fail because they believe a lot of blacks are incompetent, or else why is Africa still in that state.

Some black entreprenuers and business men/women I know (including my brother) actually had to get a non black person to partner with in order to get a loan.

Times are changing of course, but pretty slow.

[Cognition]

It does not happen everytime, but there are those occasions when a black man's job application got declined over a white man with less qualifications because they think that they will fit easier within their corporation.

In addition; again this does not happen all the time, but sometimes a black entrepreneur will have a hard time trying to get a startup loan, just because he is black. These banks might automatically think that the business will fail because they believe a lot of blacks are incompetent, or else why is Africa still in that state.

Some black entreprenuers and business men/women I know (including my brother) actually had to get a non black person to partner with in order to get a loan.

Times are changing of course, but pretty slow.

This is not very encouraging, but at least, it opens your eyes to reality and what you must execute to overcome it.