Today marks the start of a busy week in New Haven.
Black Wall Street Week is here, a celebration of the Black and Brown businesses that are the heartbeat of Connecticut. On Saturday, more than 400 Black-owned businesses will be on the New Haven Green for people to enjoy good music, good food, and support entrepreneurs.
“It’s really important for us to work with each other and keep the dollar within our community,” said Aaron Rogers, Black Wall Street cofounder. “This festival, we built it off of community.”
Rogers and Rashad Johnson created Black Wall Street in New Haven. They are Grammy Award-winning producers who were born and raised in the Elm City. Black Wall Street is known as the biggest Black-owned festival in the state, and the initiative has grown since 2022.
“We’re making sure that there’s tons of types of opportunities for people that may have been forgotten in the past, to benefit from that growth,” said New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker.
More than 10,000 people are expected to attend the flagship event on Saturday. But Black Wall Street events are happening all week.
From an open skate Sunday to a poetry slam and a fashion show, New Haven is celebrating Black and Brown entrepreneurs and creatives. There are also multiple educational opportunities for community members to learn about real estate and economic development in Connecticut. The goal of the week is to combat systemic racism by boosting the economy for these communities in the city.
“Oftentimes, the people that don’t benefit when cities grow are the folks that have over years and years and years been underserved. And we’re doing just the opposite in New Haven,” Elicker said.
For more information about events taking place during Black Wall Street Week, check out this link. NBC Connecticut is a proud media sponsor of Black Wall Street.
