Richelieu Dennis and Alfonso David joins Reverend Al Sharpton for a conversation about economics and the principle of business.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 The fight to eliminate, eradicate, or wipe out DEI,
00:05 diversity, equity, and inclusion,
00:12 is something that we in NAN take seriously.
00:15 We've been for 13 weeks now marching on Bill Ackman,
00:18 which is the activist side, you have the legal side,
00:20 they're different fronts.
00:21 We all have different roles we play.
00:24 But explain, Alfonso, the significance of DEI
00:29 to the grassroots people that are members
00:32 of our chapters around the country,
00:34 and members of our churches, members of our sorority.
00:37 Why should they care about DEI?
00:39 'Cause a lot of people have the misconception
00:42 this is for black middle class
00:44 or upper class business people.
00:46 Explain the significance of DEI
00:48 to the average person they lead.
00:50 - So, think about in the 1950s and '60s
00:55 when the Civil Rights Act was passed, right?
00:58 Martin Luther King is killed,
01:00 Lyndon Johnson says, along with many others,
01:03 we have to pass this statute that prohibits discrimination
01:06 against people based on race.
01:09 In employment, public accommodation, credit,
01:12 education, housing, all of the categories.
01:15 So you can prohibit discrimination against people of color,
01:21 but how do you enforce it?
01:25 How do you make sure that you're not discriminated against
01:28 when you try to apply for a job?
01:31 How do you make sure that you're not discriminated against
01:35 when you try to purchase a home, or buy a car?
01:38 So the concept of DEI was really an implementation tool.
01:44 How do we hold corporate entities
01:48 and all institutions accountable
01:50 for integrating their workspaces
01:52 and their marketplaces and their institutions?
01:56 So think about it that way.
01:57 If you think DEI doesn't apply to you, it applies to you.
02:01 Because essentially what DEI is,
02:04 is requiring every entity out there,
02:07 or encouraging them, because keep in mind,
02:10 that in some cases in the corporate space is voluntary.
02:13 It's entirely voluntary.
02:16 So it's encouraging or requiring institutions to integrate,
02:20 to be inclusive.
02:22 We work in spaces, walk into spaces all the time.
02:25 Why is it that every single senior manager is a white man?
02:28 But there's a law that says
02:31 you can't discriminate against race.
02:33 How does that work?
02:35 That's what DEI is.
02:37 To make sure that we're diversifying the boardrooms,
02:40 to make sure that we're diversifying the C-suite,
02:43 to make sure that we're diversifying every single space.
02:47 So all of you need to care about DEI.
02:50 It's not just about Claudine Gay.
02:52 Right, it's about every single one of us
02:56 that want to operate in spaces that are inclusive.
02:59 - And if we don't operate, they will not come get us.
03:04 We cannot depend on the same people
03:06 that excluded us to include us.
03:09 Which is why we must have these places in place.
03:14 Rich Lou, for the benefit of those that don't know,
03:18 what inspired you and yours to purchase Essence?
03:23 I mean, you were doing great with Sundial.
03:26 You were already in the, not seven figures, eight figures.
03:31 And what made you say, I want to make this investment?
03:36 - Yeah, you know, it's threefold.
03:44 One is, very important that we own our culture.
03:49 Right?
03:52 Because, I mean, you know, we are creators,
04:00 we are inventors, and we have built this country.
04:08 Right?
04:11 But we don't own it.
04:14 And so, the message that goes out,
04:19 the second point is, the message that goes out
04:23 is that we're just not good enough.
04:25 Right?
04:27 That's how they're able to say,
04:28 hey, we can't find anybody to be a manager,
04:31 so all the managers are white men.
04:34 Right?
04:35 And so, the second part of this is,
04:39 we've gotta have the vehicles through which
04:44 we don't just manage the narrative,
04:48 but that we create the accurate narrative.
04:51 And so, Essence, again, is a point where
04:56 we can not just create that narrative,
04:58 we can distribute that narrative,
05:00 and we can put that narrative, that accurate narrative,
05:04 in front of our own communities,
05:06 and then broaden it out beyond that.
05:08 Because the media shapes how we think about things.
05:13 Right?
05:13 And if we don't own it,
05:15 somebody else is shaping how we think about things.
05:20 Right?
05:20 So that's the second reason.
05:23 And then, the third reason, Rev, is,
05:27 as my cousin Emmett would say,
05:31 the revolution must be financed.
05:32 (audience cheers)
05:34 So, you gotta make money.
05:38 Right?
05:39 These things don't pay for themselves.
05:40 And if you're not able to pay for it,
05:43 then you're at the behest of somebody else paying for it.
05:46 And when you're at the behest of somebody else paying for it,
05:49 then you have to follow what it is
05:52 that they wanna see happen with their investments.
05:55 So you then become compromised, to some extent,
05:58 on what you can put out.
05:59 So our objective is to continuously be building businesses
06:04 that allow us to take the money from those businesses
06:07 and reinvest them in organizations like this.
06:11 Right?
06:12 Telling our truths and showing the world
06:14 who we are and how we are.
06:16 But we're not going to be able to do it
06:18 if we're always reliant upon somebody else
06:21 providing us those opportunities.
06:23 So, you know, those three reasons made it for us.
06:28 And we continue to grow in this space
06:32 and to find other places to be able to distribute,
06:36 to create the narrative and distribute it.
06:38 But the thing that we must always be thinking about,
06:41 like I said, you know, it's how we come together
06:44 as a community is gonna determine
06:45 how strong we're going to be, right?
06:47 It's gonna determine what our kids can look forward to
06:51 when they grow up.
06:52 Having economic assets that can reinvest into our schools,
06:57 that can reinvest into our healthcare systems,
07:00 that can reinvest into our political processes,
07:04 allow us to maintain the freedom
07:06 that we fight so hard for.
07:08 - Now, your CEO, Sister Wenger, is being honored tonight.
07:13 She has a business model that emerged out of this.
07:17 Explain a little of that so people understand.
07:20 'Cause it's very, very serious
07:23 what you've been able to structure with her.
07:25 - Yeah, she's an incredible leader
07:28 and you guys will get to meet her tonight.
07:31 But she's, you know, she's down there,
07:35 quadrupled that business since we acquired it.
07:37 So you think about that type of growth
07:41 in this type of environment,
07:43 and it's extremely impressive.
07:45 But, you know, my philosophy on this,
07:48 and this is where, you know, as I said,
07:52 the revolution must be finance.
07:54 To finance the revolution, you gotta have a healthy P&L.
07:58 And that's our business model, right?
08:00 Is we look at that P&L every day
08:03 and we drive against that P&L
08:05 so that we're able to make the amounts,
08:08 the profits that are necessary,
08:09 not just to sustain the business,
08:11 but to then invest back in our community.
08:14 And she's been an extraordinary partner in that.
08:17 I'm excited that you guys get to see her this evening.