1. Five Reasons SiliconValley Needs Black People and Five Reasons Black
People Need SiliconValley
By GeraldHarris; Email me your thoughtsat quantumplanner@gmail.com.
Findme on LinkedInat:
https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=32841606&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile
In the springof 2009 I met a unique individual. Imeta 27 yearold bi-racial AfricanAmericanmanwho
had a deepentrepreneurial spirit,whohadjustreturnedfrom2 yearsinChinateachinggrade school
childrenthere Englishwhilehe pickeduptheirlanguage,andwhohadalreadystartedandclosedtwo
businessesimportinggood fromChinaintothe UnitedStates (one forrunningshoesandthe otherfor
furniture). Diishani Imira,nowthe CEOof Mayvenn,Inc.,one of the fastestgrowingbusinessescoming
out of 500 StartupsinSiliconValley,hassince become onmyclosestfriends. Ihadthe honorof doing
some earlycoachingand supportingof hiseffortstoformMayvennandI am an investorinthe
company. Mayvennisstill initsearlygrowthphases,butI am confidentthatoverthe nextfew yearsit
will emerge asone of the biggestAfricanAmericansuccessstoriestoemerge outof SiliconValley. For
more on Mayvennvisitwww.mayvenn.com.
While workingwithDiishanIalsoservedforfouryearson the National AdvisoryBoardof the National
Societyof BlackEngineers (NSBE) andmetwhatare clearlysome of the bestandbrightestyoungminds
inBlack America. These youngmenandwomenwere beingtrainedatsome of America’stop
universitiesandgoingintosome of America’stopcompanies. Fromthese twoperspectives, my
backgroundas a futuristandscenarioplanner,aswell frommyperchof residinginSanFrancisco(and
seeingandfeelingthe techcommunityinaction) Ihave come toa view thatSiliconValleyneedsmore
AfricanAmericanmindsandheartsas itevolves andthatthe Black communityneedsalotof what
SiliconValleyhastooffer. Here are my keythoughts.
Five Reason Silicon Valley Needs African Americans
1. AfricanAmericanconsumersspendover $1 Trilliondollarsannually. Thisisastaggeringsumof
moneytobe ignoredbyValleyentrepreneurs. Some of thisof course inbeingpickedupas
AfricanAmericansconsume justlikeotherAmericans,sowe use Uber,buyfromiTunes,listento
Pandora,and of course buy iPadsandiPhones. Buttargetingthe African Americanconsumer
specificallycanprove lucrative. Hollywoodhasfiguredthisoutwithmoviestargetedatthe
Black consumerandclearlyfoodcompanieshave figuredthisout(Popeye’sChickenanyone?).
2. AfricanAmericanconsumersare style andpace-settersinarange of industries. Imagine the
musicor fashionindustrywithoutBlackpeople. NoHipHop,no Blues,nobaggie pants,nofancy
braidedhairstyles(beingadaptedbyIggyAzalea),noJazz,withoutBlackpeople (Icouldgoon).
The black athlete isprominentinfashion(playersfromthe NationalBasketball Associationare
prominentnow) andina wide range of productsaimedat the young(athleticshoesand
clothing,energydrinks,nutritional supplementsandmore).
3. AfricanAmericans(andinfact other“minorities”) are the bestonestoprovide the unique
perspectivesandapproachesthatallow themtouse and augmentproductsandservicessothey
bestserve the needsof theircommunitiesandoftenmanyothers. SiliconValleywillnotbe able
to serve those communitiesinthe mosteffectivemannerwithoutinputfromthe customersitis
serving. One wayto see thisishow AfricanAmericansandotherminoritiesuse the same
ingredientstocreate differentfoods,orhow differentyoungpeoplefromdifferentethnic

2. groupssoupup theircars, or how AfricanAmericanwomenuse hats(sorryPharrell Williams,
but the womenhave youbeatby a longway).
4. Black perspectivesincombinationwithotherspeople (White peopletoo) canproduce insights
and ideasthatcan onlyemerge froma mix of diverse viewpoints(Iknow thiswell fromleading
groupscreatingfuture scenarios). Iamfascinatedbyhow many musicbands are integrated
(BlackEyedPeas, Bruce Springsteen,Eminemandothers) andcreate globallysuccessful music.
SiliconValleymayable toavoidsome spectacularinvestmentfailures(thoughIunderstandthat
failure ispartof learningwhatdoesnotworkinthe Valley) if theyletinmore perspectives
beyondthe mostlyclosedgroupof White guysfromStanford University whoregularlyappear.
5. Black supportinthe political arenaoverthe longtermcouldprove useful tothe Valleyatitruns
intomore restriction,regulationsandbarriers. Political attackswill grow withthe influence of
SiliconValleyfirmsastheychange the basicwayswe live ourlives. AirnbandUberinchanging
the way we use our homesandcars. Other firmswill change how we getmedical care,orget
educated. Tothe extentthese companieshave impactsoneverydaylivestheywill have political
consequences. If BlackAmericansare beingservedandbenefittingfromsome of thischange,
we mightmake goodpolitical supporters.
Five Reasons Why Black America Needs Silicon Valley
1. What SiliconValleyisgoodatpointingoutishow many parts of our economyare out of date,
dumb(notinformationintensive andresponsive),andstuckinoldparadigms. The
disadvantagesandcostof these outof date patternsof operatingare costingAfricanAmerican
justlike itiscostingothers. We can benefitsfromcheaper,fasterandbetterjustlike other
consumers. Ifindit mucheasierasa Blackman to get a taxi cab in New YorkCitywithUber. My
vacationscan be made cheaperand betterwithAirnb. Ican listentomore of the musicI like at
lowercostby streamingonSpotifyorPandora. What Mayvennisdoingfor Blackhairstylistsby
bringingthemintothe digital economyisanemergingstorywithgreatpotential. Opportunities
are sure to emerge thatcan use digital technologytoshow Blackpeople how tohave better
healthhabits,receivebetterhealthcare andgetbettereducational results.
2. Black Americansneedtoparticipate inthe wealthcreationthatisgoingonto buildwealthinour
owncommunities. We needBlacktechmillionaireswhocansupportourcommunitieswithjobs
and otherformsof investment.
3. Young BlackAmericansneedtobe part of the unfoldingfuture. Frommytime withNSBEI could
see thisinthe career choicesthatyoungverywell educatedpeople were making. Blackparents
wantgreat future forour childrenjustlike all otherparents.
4. Black geniusandintellectneedstodemonstrate itsvalue inthe technologyworld justlike ithas
historicallyinotherrealms(Law: ThurgoodMarshall;Engineering:the Real McCoyintrains;
Dance: AlvinAiley;Music:take yourpick; Social Change:Dr.King; Science:Neil deGrasseTyson
and others).Americaisatisbestwhenit takesfull advantage of all of the talentsof all people.
5. Wealthyphilanthropistshave playedakeyrole inthe elevationof BlackAmericansfromthe
historical injusticesof slaveryandJimCrow. Blackcollegesreceivedsome of theirstartup
fundingandcontinue tobe supportedbythe likesof the RockefellerFoundation,the Billand
MelindaGatesFoundationandWarrenBuffet. SiliconValleybillionairescanfindsome of their
mostsatisfyinginvestmentsinbetteringthe livesof otherpeople bysupportinghistoricallyBlack
collegesandotherorganizationswhichhave made the livesof Blackpeople betterwhointurn
have made the livesof all Americanbetter.