Black Lives Matter

June 8, 2020

We at Future Founders were horrified to witness the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the other members of the Black community whose lives were cut tragically short. These crimes were heinous, unjust, and a reminder that we have so much more work to do as a country.

From day one, Future Founders has strived to create educational and economic opportunities for underserved youth, and to see the continued pain and suffering faced by the Black community is absolutely heartbreaking.

As entrepreneurs, we know the value of hard work and taking risks to overcome obstacles. But entrepreneurs of color, especially Black founders, face an additional, invisible obstacle everyday: navigating a predominantly white startup ecosystem.

To our Black students and founders: we are so grateful for your courage. We stand with you. BLACK LIVES MATTER.

While we cannot begin to fully understand the immense pain and suffering you’re experiencing, we do understand that we have a role to play in working toward a solution.

As part a recent letter shared with the community, Future Founders Chairman Brad Keywell called on entrepreneurs to take on the problem of racism in America and make it their own:

 

“From my vantage point, I believe entrepreneurs carry the keys of innovation that unlock positive change and progress…we must pursue solutions to this issue with the tenacity of a startup mindset – we will not stop until we get it right.”

 

We will not stop until we get it right. This is the ethos of entrepreneurs. The beat to which we march. And it’s fueled by action.

With that in mind, we want to share the evolving plan of action we are taking and will further take to ensure we are strong allies for people of color, especially for our Black students and founders. We will provide an update on our actions in six months so you can see our progress.

 

  • This month we are launching a directory of Black Owned Businesses run by Future Founders Participants & Alumni. For those who wish to participate, their businesses will be highlighted and promoted with the full force of our marketing channels. This directory will be a permanent fixture on the Future Founders website. Information regarding sign up will be distributed within the coming week.

 

  • We are engaging a DEI consultant. Through several unique initiatives, the goal of this relationship is to educate our team (including our staff, mentors, volunteers, and board members) on implicit and explicit biases, reflect critically on past actions, and understand how we can continue to provide safe spaces for our students and founders to grow as people and entrepreneurs.

 

  • We are looking to other nonprofits and organizations that have already laid the groundwork for creating safe and equitable spaces – including the MASS Action (Museum As Site for Social Action) DEAI framework – and learning how to adopt their findings and practices to accelerate our path forward.

 

  • Our President & CEO Scott Issen will host regular office hours to listen to members of our community who want to share, provide feedback, and engage in an open dialogue about race, entrepreneurship, and how we can continue to support founders of color, especially Black founders. If you’d like to speak with Scott, please book a time slot here.

 

 

  • We are building our own resource guide specifically geared toward helping our Black students & founders find the tools they need to better navigate the startup ecosystem. If you know of any resources that could be of help to these founders, please share them here.

 

As an organization, we strive to do more. We will continue to use our voice, educate ourselves, and most importantly, listen. We must learn how we can collectively address the pain and hardships that stem from institutionalized racism in America.

#BlackLivesMatter

In solidarity,
Future Founders

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