PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — More than a dozen mayors from around the country are meeting in Philadelphia Thursday for the African American Chamber of Commerce’s fourth annual National Convening of Black Mayors.
AACC President Regina Hairston said the event began four years ago because Black-owned businesses in the Philadelphia region were lagging compared to other U.S. cities.
“We brought mayors from across the country to talk about initiatives in their cities that are growing and scaling Black businesses,” she said.
The mayors will be discussing several topics, including advocacy, innovation and support systems, at the Wells Fargo Center, where a business expo will showcase Black-owned businesses.
Mayor Derrick Wood, of Dumfries, Virginia, admires the way Atlanta used its airport to become the city with the highest percentage of Black-owned businesses.
“Forty percent of the contracts in that airport go to Black [businesses],” he said. “We as mayors have to figure out: What is our Atlanta airport, and how do we create that same type of Black wealth in our communities?”
Hairston hopes to increase the 2.5% of Philadelphia businesses with Black owners.
“The point of this event is making sure that our mayors, our ecosystems, our Black businesses are coming together as one so that we are increasing generational wealth for Black businesses and getting folks out of poverty here in Philadelphia,” she added.
Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, of Jackson, Mississippi, said he expects to learn as much as he contributes.
“I think it’s our collective genius that ultimately puts us in a position not only for our cities to thrive but to exchange best practices so our communities at large can prosper and be in a better position than we find ourselves currently,” he said.
Ironically, though Philadelphia has its first Black mayor in eight years, Cherelle Parker will not be attending. Her office said she was traveling.