This Week on American Black Journal:

Black women entrepreneurs face uphill battle for business growth compared to men

Venturing into the world of entrepreneurship comes with challenges.  However, for Black women entrepreneurs, the hurdles can be much higher and different. A study from the National Association of Women Business Owners shows 42% of U.S. businesses are owned by women, yet those businesses grow at only half the rate as businesses owned by men. To learn more about the unique challenges African American women entrepreneurs face, “American Black Journal” host Stephen Henderson spoke with two Black women entrepreneurs from Detroit. 

Linda Hendricks, co-founder of the Detroit Dance Center, and Chinonye Akunne, the owner of ILERA Apothecary, join Henderson to discuss what led them to become entrepreneurs and share their advice for budding business owners. Plus, they talk about the financial and marketing grants they received through Comcast RISE, a program created during the pandemic to assist small businesses owned by women and people of color. 

Remembering A Racist Wall’s Past: Detroit’s Birwood Wall Receives Michigan Historical Marker 

A Michigan historical marker has been installed at the site of the Birwood Wall, which at one time stood as a symbol of racism and housing segregation in Detroit’s Eight Mile-Wyoming neighborhood. Known also as the Wailing Wall and the Eight Mile wall, for its location, the structure was erected in 1941 by a white real estate developer in an effort to separate his housing development for white residents from the adjacent African American neighborhood.  

By the 1950’s, Black families lived on both sides of the Birwood Wall. The wall has since been painted to symbolize the resilience and resolve of African Americans in the area. One Detroit senior producer Bill Kubota and contributing producer Daijah Moss attended the unveiling of the Birwood Wall historical marker to learn more about the city’s and residents’ efforts to move forward. 

Detroit Bass Day Marks 9th Annual Celebration With The Temptations Tribute, Spoken Word Poetry

Are you ready to get your groove on? The 9th annual Detroit Bass Day, created by legendary Detroit bassist Kern Brantley,  returned this year, but not just to celebrate Detroit’s catalog of great bass players. This year the annual celebration also honored the 50th recording anniversary of the Grammy Award-winning song “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone,” made famous by The Temptations. Fifty bass players came together in front of the Motown Museum to play its iconic bass line. 

Producer Daijah Moss visits Detroit Bass Day and talks with Samuel Donald, president and founder of Detroit Musix, and Emily Rogers, a local producer and bass player, to learn more about the annual gathering of bass players. Plus, she talks to University of Michigan School of Social Work Professor Richard Tolman, the leader of the “Papa Was Project” to understand how the project is helping fathers talk about their challenges and support other fathers in the community. 

Remembering Tyrone Winfrey, education advocate and DPTV Community Advisory Panel member

One of Detroit’s great public servants and education advocates has passed away. Tyrone Winfrey, who served as the executive director of community affairs for Detroit Public Schools Community District, passed away at age 63 after a five-year battle with prostate cancer. The former board president of the Detroit Public Schools and a graduate of Cass Technical High School, Winfrey was a tireless advocate for creating equitable educational opportunities for Detroit children, especially minority students. 

Winfrey extended his wisdom to “American Black Journal” as a former guest on the show and as a member of Detroit Public Television’s Community Advisory Panel. In remembrance, “American Black Journal” revisits Winfrey’s impact on education. 

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Watch American Black Journal on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 9:30 a.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.