LOUISVILLE – As part of celebrating August being National Black Business Month, the Louisville Urban League (Louisville, KY) has opened a new space for entrepreneurs.

PNC Entrepreneurship Plaza, located at the Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center, will be a place where Black entrepreneurs can advertise their services and products to those visiting the location, which contains indoor and outdoor spaces for pop-ups.

This development has come from a $1 million dollar grant from the PNC Foundation, which is a part of the Foundation’s $88 billion Community Benefits Plan, which hopes to support the economic empowerment of Black and low-income communities. The grant, announced in August of last year, supports the Urban League in its mission to empower communities of color strive for economic equality.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS RECOGNIZE 59TH ANNIVERSARY AMID STATE OF EMERGENCY FOR DEMOCRACY AND VOTING RIGHTS IN THE UNITED STATES

Call for Voter Protections, Safety Ahead of 2022 Midterm Elections

Honoring 59 years. August 28th marks the anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington that shifted the trajectory of #TheMovement. Learn more. | Glimmer of hope. This week President Biden offered much-needed relief to student loan borrowers by eliminating up to $20K worth of debt. Read more. | Ready to get boosted? After getting vaxxed, the next step to protect yourself against COVID-19 is to get boosted as the virus continues to mutate. | Let’s talk money. Watch as we dive into student loan forgiveness, the current debt crisis in America, and much more on our latest episode of Justice Now.

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

“By forgiving up to $20,000 in burdensome student loan debt, President Biden is giving working and middle class families the financial breathing room the desperately need. Buying a home, founding a business, starting a family, and so much more will now be a financial possibility for millions more Americans. But we cannot stop there. The Congressional Black Caucus remains committed to achieving additional reforms to ensure current, and future borrowers are not subjected to this cycle of burdensome debt.” – Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Joyce Beatty

In the 1970s, the maximum federal Pell Grant covered nearly 80 percent of the cost of a four-year public college degree. Today, it covers only a third.

Washington, D.C. (August 22, 2022) – Today, National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial issued the following statement in response to President Biden’s announcement of a plan to forgive a portion of student loan debt for those who need it most and extend the pause on federal student loan repayment until the end of the year:

“Today, President Biden offered much-needed relief to millions of federal student loan borrowers. With the stroke of a pen, he is forgiving $10,000 in federal student loan debt for those making under $125,000 a year for non-Pell grant recipients and up to $20,000 for Pell grant recipients. The plan also extends the moratorium on federal loan repayment until the end of the year and takes other long-term steps to ameliorate the college debt crisis for all. 

NEW YORK and LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS (August 23, 2022) – Today, Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League, and Scott Hamilton, President and CEO of the Urban League of the State of Arkansas, made the following statement after a video went viral showing law enforcement officers using excessive force on a civilian during an arrest:

ST. PETERSBURG – The Pinellas County Urban League (St. Petersburg, FL) has lost its leader.

Reverend Watson Haynes, II, President and CEO of the Urban League since 2012, passed away on the evening of Saturday, August 20th.

There was an outpouring of love and respect from many at news of his passing.

“Today our community mourns the loss of a great man,” U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, who went to high school with Haynes, wrote in a statement. “Reverend Watson Haynes was a humble public servant, someone who woke up each and every day with a commitment to fight for freedom, justice, and equality for his neighbors in Pinellas County. But above all, he was my dear friend.”

ST. LOUIS – Even a month after the disastrous flood that hit St. Louis, there is still a great need for assistance for flood victims.

The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis held an event this past Saturday, August 20th, to aid those still suffering from the flood. Thousands of families showed up to the event.

Vice President of Public Safety for the Urban League, James Clark, said of the event, “We’re just happy to be here and happy to be a part of this solution.”

The drive was held at the Urban League offices, and hearing people’s stories about the flood, left Clark feeling ‘heartbreaking.’

CHATTANOOGA – Last week, the Chattanooga Urban League (Chattanooga, TN) was able to recognize and honor local entrepreneurs during their annual Entrepreneur Power Lunch.

Graduates of the Urban League’s NextLevel program, business owners Walter Lindsay and Londie Nichole received the top honors during the event.

Lindsey is the founder and the CEO of Unity One East security company, which won the Small Business of the Year award. It has been in business since 2015, and already employs 35 people.  “An award like this means a lot,” he said. “I’ve been in business for a while now. You just keep your head down and work and work and work. You don’t think people are paying attention. So to be recognized like that on stage is a great honor.”

BUFFALO – One of the many inequities that have been exposed by the pandemic is the digital divide in lower income neighborhoods. The Buffalo Urban League (Buffalo, NY) is teaming up with AT&T to help close that gap.

The Urban League has partnered with AT&T and Dreamerscorp of Buffalo to open a brand-new state-of-art facility named the AT&T Digital Urban Lab. This facility will provide access to the tools and resources that underserved communities currently don’t have, especially in East Buffalo, where the facility is located.

The lab will be one of several that AT&T to open with the Urban League, as part of the Lewis Latimer Plan for Digital Equity and Inclusion. The plan provides an in-depth plan to bridge the digital divide, exacerbated by the pandemic.