ImpactAlpha, March 11 — Goldman Sachs is looking to impact at least one million Black women by 2030 via a $10 billion commitment to invest in education, healthcare, housing and entrepreneurship.
One Million Black Women, which also includes $100 million in philanthropic capital, aims “to address the dual disproportionate gender and racial biases that Black women have faced for generations, which have only been exacerbated by the pandemic,” The investment bank said in a statement.
A council of Black women and other leaders will advise the bank. “This initiative sends a huge signal to the industry that Black women are worth investing in,” 1863 Ventures’ Melissa Bradley, a member of the advisory council, told ImpactAlpha. “If Black women are successful, our communities are as well, and we all win” (listen in to, “Learning from history to create opportunities for equitable wealth-building now”).
The 15-member advisory council includes Opportunity Finance Network’s Lisa Mensah and Hope Enterprises’ Bill Bynum (see, “Agent of Impact: Bill Bynum”), both advocates for community development financial institutions, or CDFIs. Others include actress and producer Issa Rae, Ford Foundation’s Darren Walker, and Melanie Campbell of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation.
Bridging the gap
Goldman Sachs estimates that closing the earnings gap for Black women could create up to 1.7 million jobs and increase U.S. GDP by $300 to $500 billion per year. Racism and discriminatory practices in education, housing and access to business loans and other areas have cost the economy $16 trillion since 2000, according to Citigroup.
