
Black in Business: This Black Entrepreneur Created A Platform To Teach People About The Stock Market
Generational wealth and bridging the racial wealth gap have been topics discussed heavily throughout the past year as a result of the protests over racial injustice. Since then, numerous organizations have made new pledges to do their part to help the Black community create more wealth for their families. One Black woman used her finance background to create a platform to teach Black consumers how to generate wealth through the stock market.
Tiffany James is the founder of the Modern Black Girl, a digital platform designed to help newcomers learn to use the stock market and other resources on wealth-building and managing a stock portfolio. James says she was inspired to start her business after learning about stocks in her free time driven by her curiosity and sought to create a platform where users can learn the basics.
“The stock market is 80% psychology 20% technical,” said James in an email interview. “Not only do you learn wealth-building tips and how to manage your money but you also learn patience, confidence, critical thinking skills, and leadership.”
James has also been using the audio social app Clubhouse to help provide resources and engaging panels through the app that has helped her reach a new audience.
“When Clubhouse started I would join the guy’s stock rooms and in most cases be the only women in the conversation,” she said. “After a few rooms with the guys, a lot of women begged me to start my own platform back in November. Three months later, we are here with over 94,000 members [who are] primarily women of color.”
The platform also hosts a Teen University for younger people to learn the basics about the stock markets in addition to classes for adults.

Black Development: This Senegalese National Is Now The First African To Head World Bank’s International Finance Corporation
Makhtar Diop has been named as the chief executive of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private arm of the World Bank. The appointment makes him the first African to head the position.
The Senegalese national replaces Philippe Le Houerou, who stepped down in September 2020 after more than four years as the IFC’s CEO, according to Reuters. Stephanie von Friedeburg, who stepped in as the interim CEO following the resignation of Le Houerou, was appointed IFC’s senior vice president of operations.
World Bank President David Malpass praised Diop’s knowledge in both private and public service. He expressed confidence in the Senegalese national’s ability to attract investment to low-carbon energy, transportation, clean water, digital services and other infrastructure.
“Makhtar’s skills at IFC will help the World Bank Group continue our rapid response to the global crisis and help build a green, resilient, inclusive recovery,” Malpass said in a statement released by the IFC. “Makhtar’s skills at IFC will help the World Bank Group continue our rapid response to the global crisis and help build a green, resilient, inclusive recovery.”
According to the statement, Diop’s key responsibilities will be to deepen and energize IFC’s 3.0 strategy of proactively creating markets and mobilizing private capital at significant scale; deliver on the IFC capital package policy commitments including increased climate and gender investments and support for FCV countries facing fragility, conflict and violence.
In addition, the statement said he will strengthen the linkages between IFC, the World Bank, and MIGA, as the World Bank Group accelerates efforts aimed at boosting good development outcomes in client countries.
Diop is a former minister of economy and finance of Senegal, West Africa. Prior to his appointment, he served as the World Bank’s vice president for infrastructure, supervising the bank’s work across energy, transport, digital development and other sectors.
He also served six years as the World Bank’s Vice President for the Africa Region, where he oversaw the delivery of a record-breaking $70 billion to Sub-Saharan Africa to help tackle development challenges such as increasing access to affordable and sustainable energy; boosting women’s and youth’s economic empowerment; and promoting an enabling environment for more innovation and technology adoption, according to the World Bank.
Also, from 2009 to 2012, Diop held the position of World Bank Country Director for Brazil where the World Bank helped finance major infrastructure work and was the Bank’s Country Director for Kenya, Eritrea, and Somalia.
Diop has been named one of the 100 most influential Africans in the world by the Africa Report. In 2015, he received the prestigious Regents’ Lectureship Award from the University of California, Berkeley.
The Senegalese holds degrees in economics from the Universities of Warwick and Nottingham in England.

Feature News: A Black-Owned Tea Brand Is Seeing Increase In Sales Thanks To Netflix’s Bridgerton
There are tea cultures in many parts of the world and the English are known to have a staunch one. With the premiere of the Regency era drama Bridgerton, many people revived their love for sipping teas in fancy cups at the comfort of their homes. LaRue 1680, a Black-owned tea brand afforded many Americans that luxury with the company seeing a spike in sales since the show hit the screens.
Stephanie Synclair, the founder of LaRue 1680 and a business coach, did not always set out to curate exotic tea blends. She was a young woman who always wanted to see the world and experience different cultures. Getting pregnant did not even stop her from jet-setting around the world, contrary to what everyone around her thought.
In 2012, Synclair, whose son Caden is now 14 years old, began exploring Asia and Europe when he was just 7. “I knew when I had him, we were gonna experience it together. I decided I was never gonna look at my child like a hindrance, but the fuel for me to do this,” Synclair told.
This was when the Alabama native first connected with the tea drinking culture in Indonesia. She and her son were swooned by the intricate tea drinking ceremonies in Bali as well as the art of making them.
Caden loved the experience so much so that for his 8th birthday, he requested a Balinese sipping class that encompassed the whole tea-making ritual where they would grind and mix their herbs, fruits, and spices to create unique mixtures.
After a year of enjoying the great outdoors in Bali and learning to curate lovely and sensual tea mixtures, Synclair and her son returned to the states, but Bali and their tea-loving culture never left them.
She continued to make the teas at home and for her family and friends. As she saw herself evolve making these teas for people around her, Synclair decided to take it up as a business and the e-commerce brand, LaRue 1680, was born. It, however, did not go public till several years later.
The single mother, determined to put out the best product for consumers, spent 2019 mostly in France conducting extensive research on teas and planned to launch in January 2020, but 2020 had a mind of its own.
The world was hit with a pandemic that to date, many lives have been lost and many businesses have collapsed. She decided to see the silver lining in having to delay the launch of her loose-leaf teas and used that time to properly structure her business module and her wares.
Finally, in October 2020, Synclair put her handcrafted teas online available for nationwide delivery and the feedback was amazing, especially because many were still at home quarantining and a little to get them by was now within reach.
“Generally, the way you see tea marketed is flat, not sexy. When it’s done right: it’s so sexy. This is not your grandmother’s tea,” said Synclair. “Listen: Grab a beautiful cup and let’s put our pinkies up.”
With Bridgerton’s premiere on Christmas Day, Synclair, as a business coach, saw the opportunity to market her teas seeing as the characters oozed the English tea culture scene after scene.
The public’s response to Bridgerton and everything in it worked in Synclair’s favor. As fashion houses were making Regency era pieces in the collections, people fell in love with LaRue 1680’s timely loose-leaf tea brand and the whole relaxed ‘stay at home and let us enjoy the series with the tea vibe.’
She posted her teas on Instagram while playing around with the principal characters alluding to which of the blends the characters could be sipping on or which ones match the personality of the characters, and it worked.
LaRue 1680 saw a growth rate of around 500% comparing their revenue in October after the launch through to December when the series premiered.
The teas go for $10 to $19 per 3-ounce bag (about 40 to 50 cups) and many want her to get a tea shop they can come and relive all their own romantic era story but Synclair wants to give it time.
The tea-entrepreneur intends on celebrating the anniversary of her launch with lavish pop-ups and tailored garden experiences for her consumers to enjoy their teas.

Feature News: Nigeria Is Going To Sell 36 Landed Federal Properties To Fund National Budget
The federal government of Nigeria says it will have to sell as many as 36 properties to fund its 2021 national budget as a result of challenges in raising funds and expectation of further encumbrances in the international financial markets.
A number of the properties will also be available for concession. The process of sale and concessions began at the beginning of this year and expected to be wrapped up by November 2022.
The Abuja International Conference Centre (ICC), a major venue for local and international programs is part of the properties put on the market. Some oil refineries have also reportedly been listed. A building belonging to the Abuja Environmental Protection Board in the capital, as well as Abuja Water Board and Nigerian Film Corporation properties are up for sale.
Nigeria is also prepared to sell or list for concession some 29 ongoing projects under different federal departments including Energy, Natural Resources, and Industries. Some of these would only be available for partial ownership and for sale in shares and they will be available to foreign investors.
It is not known how much Africa‘s largest economy expects to generate from the fundraising drive but the country’s Finance Minister, Zainab Ahmed, has already hinted that Nigeria may borrow up to $14.69 billion from international and local lenders.
Between $1.3 billion and $8.65 is reserved for debt servicing in this fiscal year. Nigeria’s quest to raise money in a very difficult period across the world has been met with challenges of different kinds, including a religious row.
Toward the end of last year, the government announced that it was going to fund some projects using Sukuk, an Islamic financial practice.
Under a Sukuk, an issuer sells an investor group a certificate, which then rents it back to the issuer for a predetermined rental fee, while the issuer also makes a contractual promise to buy back the bonds at a future date at par value.
But the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) accused the federal government headed by a Muslim, of trying to “Islamize” Nigeria.

Feature News: Football Star Herschel Walker Told Congress Black Americans Shouldn’t Get Reparations
Georgian and College Football Hall of Famer Herschel Walker told a House Judiciary Committee meeting on Wednesday that Black Americans should not get reparations, citing moral and other reasons.
“We use black power to create white guilt. My approach is biblical: how can I ask my Heavenly Father to forgive me if I can’t forgive my brother?” asked the former NFL player who campaigned for former President Donald Trump last year.
“America is the greatest country in the world for me, a melting pot of a lot of great races, a lot of great minds that have come together with different ideas to make Americans the greatest country on Earth. Many have died trying to get into America. No one is dying trying to get out,” he said in the virtual hearing.
Walker joined the discussion in the session of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, which debated H.R. 40, a piece of legislation that would establish a federal commission to look at the issue of reparations to Black Americans. The legislation was first introduced by the late Rep. John Conyers of Michigan in 1989 but it has never received a floor vote in the House.
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas reintroduced it in January. Walker on Wednesday was joined by Hilary O. Shelton, head of the NAACP’s Washington, D.C., California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and others in discussing the bill, which has 162 co-sponsors. 58-year-old Walker, who played in the old USFL and NFL for over 15 years, asked during the hearing how Blackness would be measured if such a bill were passed.
“Reparations, where does the money come from? Does it come from all the other races except the black taxpayers? Who is black? What percentage of black must you be to receive reparations? Do you go to 23andMe or a DNA test to determine the percentage of blackness? Some American ancestors just came to this country 80 years ago, their ancestors wasn’t even here during slavery. Some black immigrants weren’t here during slavery, nor their ancestors. Some states didn’t even have slavery.”
The former Dallas Cowboys star said before the hearing, he asked his mom what he thought about reparations. “…Her words: I do not believe in reparations. Who is the money gonna go to? Has anyone thought about paying the families who lost someone in the Civil War, who fought for their freedom?”
“Reparation is only feeding you for a day. It is removing a sign ‘for whites only’ and replacing it with the sign ‘no education here,’” he said. The football star does not think White people should have to atone for slavery. “Who is the guilty party?” Walker, who is a 1982 Heisman Trophy winner asked. “Should we start at the beginning where African Americans sold your African American ancestors into slavery? And to a slave trader who eventually sold African American ancestors to slave owners?”
“I feel it continues to let us know we’re still African American, rather than just American. Reparation or atonement is outside the teaching of Jesus Christ.”
The issue of reparation for slavery has been raised by descendants of slaves in the Americas and the Caribbean for several years now. The belief that white Americans owe black Americans a moral debt for compensation for slavery, Jim Crow and long-standing racism has been ongoing since emancipation.
Critics of reparation say that it would be difficult to make fair calculations as to how much victims would take and in what form, considering the years involved. Those who have supported reparations say it is necessary to help redress the wrongs of slavery and racial discrimination. It would also help to resolve the continuing troubles of America’s black community. It is documented that “black Americans’ continuing poverty is a result of America deliberately frustrating the efforts of black Americans to accumulate and retain wealth until the 1980s.”
Nationwide polling shows, however, that compensation for those affected by slavery is an unpopular policy. In the journal Social Science Quarterly, a University of Connecticut researcher, Thomas Craemer estimated that it would cost between $5.9 trillion and $14.2 trillion to give historical reparations.
The journal, cited by Newsweek, said Craemer came up with those figures by tabulating how many hours all slaves worked in the United States from when the country was officially established in 1776 until 1865 when slavery was officially abolished. He subsequently multiplied the amount of time they worked by average wage prices at the time, and then a compounding interest rate of 3 percent per year to calculate the reparation figure.
During Wednesday’s hearing, Jackson Lee chastised Republican lawmakers for selecting two Black conservatives to speak against reparations.
“Like our last hearing, the minority has selected two African-American witnesses to speak against HR 40. That is their privilege. But we know that justice, facts and that life that was led and continues to be led by African Americans is on our side,” she said.

Feature News: Lupita Nyong’o’s Children’s Book ‘Sulwe’ Is Coming To Netflix As An Animated Musical
Lupita Nyong’o has spoken out on colorism and self-love several times and her maiden children’s book Sulwe delivers that message aptly to young and old readers alike. Giant streaming platform Netflix announced Thursday that it is bringing the book to life in an animated musical and we are all here for it.
Sulwe, which means Star in the Lou language, centers around Sulwe, a dark-skinned girl who goes on a starry-eyed adventure and awakens with a reimagined sense of beauty as she comes to terms with her dark skin.
Nyong’o noted that in her native Kenya, there is an explicit preference for people with lighter shades even in the overwhelmingly Black-skinned country.
It was illustrated by Vashti Harrison and with this being her first book, Nyong’o hopes to inspire young Black children to appreciate and accept their uniqueness.
A statement released on Thursday by the ‘12 Years A Slave’ actress reiterated how personal the book was to her indicating that Sulwe is close to her heart being a victim of colorism herself. “Growing up, I was uncomfortable in my dark skin,” she said. “I rarely saw anyone who looked like me in the aspirational pages of books and magazines, or even on TV. It was a long journey for me to arrive at self-love.”
She continued, “Sulwe is a mirror for dark-skinned children to see themselves, a window for those who may not be familiar with colorism, to have understanding and empathy, and an invitation for all who feel different and unseen to recognize their innate beauty and value.
“I am thrilled that the book is being adapted into an animated musical that we hope inspires children all around the world to celebrate their uniqueness.”
Last year, Lupita had a special homecoming for Sulwe in East Africa with new editions in her native language Luo and widely spoken Swahili.
The Oscar-winning actress shared the news on Twitter hoping that the message of Sulwe “can travel the world for readers of all ages, but it’s especially meaningful to bring it home”.
“#Sulwe is coming home! You can now find editions in Kenya in English, Swahili & my mother tongue, Luo. My childhood inspired Sulwe’s story,” she wrote at the time.
Nyong’o is an outspoken voice on issues of racism and colorism. Since her breakout appearance in 2013’s “12 Years A Slave”, she has used her platform to channel the movement aimed at collapsing racial prejudice.
Often, she draws on her experiences as a young Black woman in spaces with people who do not look like her. Nyong’o went to the United States from Kenya although she was born in Mexico where she lived for several years.

Black in Business: African-American Athlete Moved To Rwanda To Start A Sportswear Business
In 2018, Rwandan launched the ‘Made-In-Rwanda’ initiative to boost the production and consumption of local products. A number of local and international entrepreneurs responded to the initiative to open local industries and companies.
One of such persons is Allen Simms, who took his sporting venture to Rwanda. The African American is the founder of Impano Sports, a company that provides African-inspired quality sports apparel designed specifically for athletes, runners, and the active lifestyle community.
Although Simms took advantage of the Rwandan government’s Made-In-Rwanda policy, his venture started when he traveled to the East African country to identify and coach young talented athletes. While in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, he noticed that many of the athletes had limited access to quality sportswear and that was how Impano Sports was founded.
Simms is a former track and field athlete. He competed for Puerto Rico in 2007 after switching allegiance from the United States in 2005 before changing back in 2008. He emerged as the national champion in 2007 and was ranked 15th in the world. In 2004, he was the champion in the triple jump of the USA Indoor Champion. Also, he finished fourth at the 2003 Pan American Games and eighth in the long jump at the 2007 Pan American Games.
He was an athlete at the University of Southern California and a coach at Cornell University. “There at Cornell I was training a bunch of spoiled kids and I wanted to make an impact with my coaching so let’s see what’s going on in Africa,” he said in a Shoppe Black interview.
Simms aims to empower Africans to be independent and bring out their creative juices. Part of his agenda is to encourage the youth to discard the second-hand ideology. It is a known fact that across Africa, there is a high demand for second-hand clothing from Europe and other developed nations. To try to reverse this, Simms produces quality sportswear for the local and international market.
The former athlete recently praised the Rwandan government’s effort to develop the fashion industry. “They make it very comfortable to live here as a foreigner. They have a nice system in place to set up a business,” he said.
Simms obtained his bachelor’s degree in multimedia technology from the University of South California in 2005 and a Master of Art in Liberal Studies and a graduate certificate in Global Studies from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro in 2014. Also, he holds IAAF and USATF coaching certificates in athletes majoring in jumping events.

Feature News: A South Carolina Man Just Won Custody Of Daughter Who Was Adopted Without His Permission
A father from South Carolina is full of joy after winning custody of his daughter who was adopted by a new family without his permission. Christopher Emanuel said his girlfriend put their newborn daughter, Skyler, up for adoption without telling him.
“…I was hurt, I was confused because I wanted to ensure that I could be there for my child,” Emanuel said.
In South Carolina, fathers can sign up on the responsible fatherhood registry, an online database through DSS that tells the state that you have a child. Emanuel had filed on February 14, 2014, to be added as Skyler’s father on the registry, which must notify him if her mother puts her up for adoption.
However, when a Southern California family filed to adopt her a few days later (February 19), Emanuel was not added to their paperwork as the biological father. At that moment, Emanuel said he didn’t know if he would ever see his daughter again. But after months of contesting the adoption through a court in Aiken County, where Skyler was born, he got his daughter back; the judge granted him sole custody of his daughter.
“This was my opportunity to prove that I was deprived of that my constitution and state rights were violated,” he said.
“Aiken County Judicial Center this is where it went down at. But when I’m here being in this space it fills me with joy, I feel safe because Aiken County brought my daughter home where she belongs,” said Emanuel, who was inspired by his case to start the Sky Is The Limit Foundation where he travels across the U.S. educating fathers on their parental rights.

Feature News: Alton Sterling’s Family Offered $4.5M Settlement Years After Fatal Police Shooting
The East Baton Rouge Metro Council on Wednesday voted to offer a $4.5 million settlement to the family of Alton Sterling almost five years after the 37-year-old Black man was shot multiple times at point-blank range by a Baton Rouge police officer.
The recent offer was approved after the council voted 7-4 in favor of it, ABC News reported. This comes after officials initially rejected a $5 million proposed settlement in November 2020 following the inability of the 12-member council to get the required majority votes that were needed for it to be approved.
“I am pleased our metro council was able to find a consensus and approve an offer of settlement in the Alton Sterling civil case. After nearly five years, the people of Baton Rouge are finally one step closer to getting much needed closure in this traumatic episode in our history,” Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome posted on Twitter on Wednesday.
“Now we must continue the work of building a more fair and equitable community, where every citizen is treated justly, no matter their race or ethnicity,” she added.
Sterling was fatally shot in front of a convenience store on July 5, 2016, during a scuffle with two Baton Rouge police officers. The officers – Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II – were responding to the scene after someone called 911 claiming to have been threatened with a gun by a Black man selling CDs in front of the store.
During the confrontation, a mobile phone video recording of the incident showed the officers holding Sterling down at a certain point, with 6 shots later fired. Salamoni, who discharged the shots, reportedly yelled Sterling was armed and reaching for his weapon before opening fire.
Sterling’s death sparked days of protests against police use of excessive force on Black people. Salamoni was fired in 2018 after it was established he used excessive force.
The settlement offer comes after Sterling’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit, with the trial scheduled to begin in three weeks’ time, according to the Associated Press. Should his family and their attorneys reject the settlement, the trial will go ahead.

Feature News: West African Countries Put Citizens On High Alert As Guinea Declares New Ebola Epidemic
The World Health Organization (WHO) has alerted West African nations to watch out for potential cases of Ebola. The alert was issued to six nations in the region after Ebola cases were recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Guinea.
Guinea officially declared an outbreak last Sunday after confirming at least seven cases of the disease and three deaths, according to the country’s National Security and Health Agency (ANSS). This was after locals attended the burial of a nurse and started reporting Ebola-like symptoms.
Meanwhile, DRC on January 7 declared the emergence of Ebola after a new case of Ebola was detected in Butembo, a city in North Kivu Province, where a previous outbreak was declared over in June 2020.
“We have already alerted the six countries around, including of course Sierra Leone and Liberia, and they are moving very fast to prepare and be ready and to look for any potential infection,” the WHO’s Margaret Harris told a Geneva briefing, according to Africanews. Guinea’s neighbors include Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
The WHO has pledged to procure Ebola vaccines to support Guinea which has helped to control the recent outbreak in DRC, according to CNN. The network also reports that WHO teams are already in Guinea to ensure prevention in health facilities, key locations and communities.
According to WHO’s Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the current outbreak started in a border area of Guinea and that officials are working with health authorities in Liberia and Sierra Leone to increase surveillance in border areas.
“It’s a huge concern to see the resurgence of Ebola in Guinea, a country which has already suffered so much from the disease. However, banking on the expertise and experience built during the previous outbreak, health teams in Guinea are on the move to quickly trace the path of the virus and curb further infections,” said Dr. Moeti said in a statement. “WHO is supporting the authorities to set up testing, contact-tracing and treatment structures and to bring the overall response to full speed.”
The statement also noted that WHO was reaching out to Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Senegal and other countries at risk in the sub-region. More than 28,000 people were infected with Ebola in West Africa between 2014 to 2016, resulting in the death of 11,000 of them.
The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission, according to the World Health Organization. It was first discovered in 1976 in South Sudan and DRC. The largest outbreak of the disease was recorded in West Africa between 2014–2016.
The incubation period of the disease is two to 21 days. Symptoms of the disease include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache and sore throat.

Feature News: This Man Left His Corporate Job Of 12 Yrs To Create The First Black-Owned Cereal
During the nationwide protests following the murder of George Floyd, Nic King thought hard about how Black voices could be amplified. Multiple publications have underscored the fact that the Black community has been underinvested and Black businesses struggle to raise venture funding to expand their operations.
King recalls on the Kelly Clarkson Show that he was emotionally charged, just like the majority of the protestors who took to the streets to protest Floyd’s unjust killing. In the midst of the chaos, that was how King got a business idea to found a cereal company called Proud Puff cereals, a vegan, gluten-free chocolate-flavored cereal that comes in the shape of a Black fist. He had left his corporate job of 12 years.
“It came to me through divine inspiration,” King said. “Summer of 2020 during the George Floyd protests, just like very one else, the world looked emotionally charged, I couldn’t sleep it was 3am and it was like someone whispered to me, it sound bizarre but I woke up and I thought Cereal company.
“Just like everybody else my age, I grabbed my phone and I am scrolling through social media and there was a lot of anger, a lot of sadness we’ve seen a lot of protest but there was also company initiatives, going forward how they are going to amplify black voices as well as ensure diversity, inclusion and equity.
“So I just Google Black owned cereal thinking it has to be there. And to my surprise, it wasn’t there and from there I was like wow this is my opportunity not to just wait for the change to happen but to actually be the change,” he said.
King touts his business as the first Black-owned cereal in America. According to him, since he launched his cereal the feedback has been overwhelming. Despite the early signs of promise, the Black entrepreneur notes that there are still hurdles to overcome, one being large production to meet growing demands and putting his cereal on grocery shelves.
“I’ve been reaching out to these brands, but I haven’t received any feedback. I guess it’s because I’m the new guy in town. So, I understand that. But, I’m focusing on [my] brand, just building with my community,” he said.
With Proud Puff, King is not only looking at creating jobs but also wants to showcase Black greatness. He decided to put his family on the cereal box. On the side of the box, he lists 20 influential Blacks across every sphere.
King is currently working on more cereal concepts and building up his brand despite the pandemic. “There’s a lot of systems that come to play. I have to get tested first before I can go to the office or the distribution facility. It’s definitely slowed down a bit, forcing me to go online a lot more. But, I’ve been building, and cultivating what I need to do organically to make the business rise,” he said.
Starting Proud Puff cereal was not King’s first attempt at entrepreneurship. He previously attempted launching a clothing line but was not successful.

Black Development: Meet The Black Father Who Designed A Diaper Bag Brand Just For Dads
As traditional gender roles continue to shift, more fathers are stepping in to assume full-time parenting roles outside of their jobs. However, many baby products have not changed their models to accommodate hands-on dads. Frustrated with the limited options, one Black father decided to fill this gap by creating a brand of diaper bags designed just for men.
Kwame White is the founder and CEO of W.S.E.L Bags, a modern diaper bag designed for full-time dads on the go. White came up with the idea after looking for a bag to carry while he was taking care of his son Kobe. That is when he realized that most of the products he saw were designed to appeal to mothers.
“I think it’s great that women have lots of options,” said White in an interview with via email. “But in 2021, it’s past time for fathers to have great options as well. I wanted to create diaper bags for dads to let fathers know that they are valued too.”
The brand currently carries three different styles in their online store—the Kobe Expandable, Jett, and Jaden. White hopes that the brand will help put a spotlight on fathers who play an active role in their children’s lives and upbringing.
“Traditionally, men worked and women stayed home with the children. Those days are long gone. Both fathers and mothers balance work and family life,” he said. “More than ever, fathers are actively involved within every area of their children’s lives. Many fathers choose jobs or start businesses specifically so they can spend more time with their family.”
White says one of the company’s goals is to help change the negative narrative of absentee Black fathers. Another way he is challenging that stereotype is by hosting fatherly strolls which encourages Black men to connect and fellowship while pushing their little ones in the strollers.