Reverend Jesse Jackson
“50 Years after The Civil Rights Act: The Unfinished Agenda for Economic Justice”
THE NEED TO CONTINUE THE FIGHT FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE & PARITY
Tuesday, February 11 — Thursday, February 13, 2014
The Rainbow PUSH Coalition and Citizenship Education Fund will host the 17th Annual Wall Street Project Economic Summit, February 11 – February 13, 2014 at The Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, 811 Seventh Avenue at 52nd Street, New York, NY, 10019. This year’s summit, “50 Years After the Civil Rights Act: The Unfinished Agenda for Economic Justice…” will focus on the decline in black businesses, home foreclosures and unemployment.
The Wall Street Economic Summit brings together the nation’s leaders in political, corporate, entrepreneurial and other industries to WALL STREET – all to discuss the economic congruity and concerns distinctive to men and women of African American, Hispanic and diverse cultures. The U.S. Agriculture secretary and agriculture secretaries from several African countries will discuss investment opportunities and hunger in Africa.
“For more than 50 years, Black Americans have increased their buying power from $37 Billion to over a Trillion dollars. But, our consumerism has not translated into a fair share of contracts and jobs with corporate America,” says Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and organizer of the Wall Street Project. The summit will address this ongoing issue.
“The assault on African American Businesses has been devastating. While the general economy is enjoying a steady boost, we are losing record numbers of businesses,” adds Jackson. “Income inequality is a growing concern and the financial crisis didn’t help. In the U. S., the wealthiest 1% grabbed 95% of the post 2009 growth and the bottom 90% became poorer. While financial transactions are of particular interest to the Wall Street Project there is increasing concern generally about lack of opportunity and a disturbing…”
DECLINE IN BLACK BUSINESS: Black-owned auto dealerships took a pounding during the recent recession, dropping from over 500 in 2008 to 200 today.
The number of Black auto suppliers has dropped from 60 to less than 20.
Media and Telecommunications represent 1/6th of the U. S. economy, yet too few own too much. African Americans are 13% of the population but minority TV station ownership has dropped from 22 to 4 today. For full power radio stations, that number has dropped to 240 or only 1.6% of US radio stations. The tax certificate policy quintupled the number of minority owned stations from 1978 to 1995 but the Gingrich “Contract on America killed it and Congress has repeatedly failed to restore and update the tax certificate policy.
No ethnic group watches more television than African Americans, yet of $75 billion spent on TV, magazine, Internet and radio advertising, only 2.4 billion of it was spent with Black audience focused media.
HOME FORECLOSURES: For Black homeowners, the picture since the recession has been particularly grim. There have been 4.6 million foreclosures since 2008 and a disproportionate number of the homes, 1.6 million, were black owned.
UNEMPLOYMENT: The economic recession in America led to high unemployment for ALL Americans but the labor market continues its steady recovery. Lost in the positive news, though, is the fact that the unemployment rate for African-Americans continues to be double that of whites and that hasn’t changed in 50 years.
We will release a Study and Scorecard on 160 major corporation’s use of minority broker dealer firms and the implications of the findings.
Facts from this study include: Thirty-three percent of all African Americans own smart phones and use double the mobile phone minutes as Whites yet when Verizon did the biggest corporate bond offering in history last September, no minority banks or broker dealers were used. Fees of $265 million went to a handful of majority owned banks.
24 million African Americans are Internet users and 76% visit social media sites, yet Twitters recent IPO had only 1 minority investment banking firm. Face book used a handful of minority firms in its IPO but combined, they earned less than 1% of the fees.
Highlights of the three-day summit will include:
The World of Toyota: A session on business opportunities with the auto manufacturer for asset managers, broker dealers and IT firms.
The Business of Hip-Hop: As Hip Hop celebrates 40 years of global impact, this session celebrates its accomplishments and recognizes the spirit of entrepreneurship. Participants can expect to explore opportunities for economic development and best practices for generating revenue and social inclusion using non-traditional techniques and methods in the 21st century.
The Business of Sports: The session will focus on the Role, Economic Impact and Future of the African American Sports Agent. Several of the nation’s top African American Sports Agents will intimately examine the economic impact of African Americans on the $470 Billion US Sports Sector Industry.
Wall Street Project Career Symposium:
A three-part career management session geared to strengthen professional employees with empowering tools, resources, skill sets and insights on new realities for creating, and managing employment and career opportunities in today’s highly technical work environment.
Shared Thoughts of Titans: A compelling discussion with some of the most powerful business leaders in the World.
Student Loan Debt: Learn how to managing it and paying it off.
Opportunities for Minorities on Corporate and Non-Profit Boards: This session is for senior level execs. who are looking to advance their professional portfolios and demonstrate their leadership acumen through service on corp. and governing boards. Panelists will cover the strategic career choices, skill sets, personal traits and resources necessary for the executive’s service on corporate boards.
What Will Jobs Look Like in 5 Years, 10 Years? : This session will ask the questions: What will the jobs be? Where will the jobs be? Will you be prepared to compete?
Annual Scholarship Gala: “Wall Street Goes Uptown To Harlem” will feature entertainment from the cast of the current Broadway hit musical” After Midnight” and a taste of Harlem from several popular Harlem restaurants.
The 2014 honorary co-chairs are Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, D-NY 9th District, Terry Lundgren, Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer, Macy’s, Inc., General Motors will host a Media Day focusing on opportunities for minority media with the automaker and Houston Style Magazine will serve as a promotional media sponsor.
The full agenda can be found online at www.rainbowpushwallstreetproject.org
The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is a progressive organization protecting, defending and expanding civil rights to improve economic and educational opportunity.
To register visit: www.rainbowpushwallstreetproject.org or call (646)-569-5889
