LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Today we offer a special edition of Texas Inc. focusing on Houston’s Black business community. The idea grew from the renewed focus on inequality and injustice that runs along racial lines in American society and the Buy Black movement that followed the killing of George Floyd by police.

Houston has more than 90,000 Black-owned businesses, a testament to a rich history of entrepreneurship, persistence and determination in the region’s Black communities. Starting and running a business is tough under the best of circumstances, but Black-owned business have had to overcome particular challenges, including a legacy of racism and discrimination that has limited access to credit, markets and connections — the lifeblood of commerce.

In this edition, we examine how Houston’s long-stated freemarket philosophy excluded Black communities and businesses and how its aversion to government intervention was set aside when it benefited whites. We look at the state of Black workers, who were hit harder by pandemic-related shutdowns and have recovered more slowly. Finally, in our cover story, we identify a path forward for Black- owned businesses in the era of Black Lives Matter.

On Tuesday, we’ll host a webinar with local Black business leaders to discuss the impact of Black Lives Matter and Buy Black movements and whether they will lead to lasting economic change. You can still register at https:// bit.ly/Insiderwebinar.

I hope that today’s Texas Inc. will become a launching pad for more consistent reporting on Houston’s Black and minority businesses and the diversity of the local economy. In other words, our goal is to move from “special coverage” to just coverage.

Please contact me if you have ideas, complaints, criticisms or even praise.