Today is the day we pause to honor one of our world’s most important heroes, Martin Luther King, Jr. Entrepreneurship is one of those areas that should be immune to the biases, prejudices and inequalities of our world. If you’re brave enough to start your own business, how could anything or anyone stand in your way to build something great? But the harsh reality is those biases, prejudices and inequalities are very real.
One of our founding tenets at Startup Southerner is that entrepreneurship is for all, and we don’t shy away from pointing out those inequities when we see them. We give founders of all genders, races and backgrounds a chance to share their stories—even when they’re uncomfortable to hear and don’t fit into our country’s idealized notion of entrepreneurship. Here are some of those stories we’ve helped tell over the past year:
Kelli Nowers of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center on “sitting in the discomfort.”
An Atlanta-based startup that is tackling hard issues like recidivism in Memphis.
Tips from Domonique Townsend, a minority founder, on things every startup should do to foster inclusion.
A Q+A with LeShane Greenhill, a Nashville entrepreneur in residence for Code2040.
A Little Rock, Arkansas founder on the difficulties black founders face in finding funding.
How one New Orleans startup is giving opportunity youth a chance they’ve never had.
A South Carolina startup is exposing underserved kids to STEM skills and careers.
A Q+A with Eyona Mitchell, an Arkansas founder who is ready to see more diversity in the startup scene.
As always, we’d love to hear from you! Catch us on our social media channels or at [email protected] and share with us so that we can learn from your voice and story.
Photo Credit: #WOCinTechChat
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