Beyoncé Has Partnered with the NAACP to Help Black-Owned Businesses
Beyoncé is continuing to help people suffering the most amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her BeyGOOD's Black Business Impact Fund has teamed up with the NAACP to help Black-owned small businesses that have been impacted by "recent events across the country."
"Over the last couple of months, the pandemic and outpours for justice throughout the Black community and across the country has been felt in every imaginable area of our lives, including in how our local businesses continue to operate," the NAACP website reads. "The challenges of Black business owners navigating in the climate cannot be understated, as the effects of uprisings across the nation have led to many businesses being placed in dire straits due to damages and other small business needs."
BeyGOOD and NAACP will be awarding $10,000 grants to eligible businesses in Houston, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, or Minneapolis. To apply, potential applicants must provide their property damage or replacement estimates. Submissions first opened on July 9 and will close on July 18. The selected applicants will be announced on Beyoncé's website on July 31.
Earlier this year, Beyoncé also donated $6 million to coronavirus relief efforts via the BeyGOOD Foundation. "In our major cities, African-Americans comprise a disproportionate number of workers in these indispensable occupations, and they will need mental health support and personal wellness care, including testing and medical services, food supplies and food deliveries, both during and after the crisis," the foundation said in a statement at the time.
Fittingly, the singer was later awarded with the Humanitarian Award at the BET awards, presented to her by Michelle Obama.
In a pre-recorded speech to accept the honor, she encouraged fans to vote and continue speaking out for the Black Lives Matter movement.
"Your voices are being heard and you're proving to our ancestors that their struggles were not in vain," she said at the time. "Now we have one more thing we need to do to walk in our true power and that is to vote. I'm encouraging you to continue to take action. Continue to change and dismantle the racist and unequal system."
