Panelists

According to a press release sent to AfroTech, Dream Corps TECH has partnered with leading banking and education platform Stash to host the second annual Black Future Weekend from Friday, June 24 to Sunday, June 26.

Attendees will be exposed to conversations moderated by Ernestine Johnson Morrison on closing the wealth gap, workforce development, education, emerging and clean tech trends, finance, entertainment, health, and wellness, among others.

Featured panelists will include actor and entrepreneur Hill Harper, Miami Mayor Francis Xavier Suarez, and Pharrell Williams’ Black Ambition Opportunity Fund CEO Felecia Hatcher.

“Wealth has a need for speed. Oftentimes when we talk about money, especially as it relates to the Black community and access to it, money is loud, but wealth whispers. When we talk about closing the wealth gap, that is not unlocking a few dollars here, a few dollars there. It is about how can we connect the Black community, entrepreneurs, the youth, and tech professionals and help them make as much money as possible and as fast as we possibly can. We do this in a lot of ways with Black Ambition. It’s the reason Pharrell founded the organization to fund Black and Latinx entrepreneurs at a really high level and get them high-level mentorship,” Hatcher told AfroTech exclusively.

Attendees

The panel is supported by platinum partner Stash. The investment platform conducted a study revealing that 93 percent of Black Americans desire to create generational wealth but 53 percent are unsure of how to begin. To combat uncertainties and encourage wealth building, Stash will give $50 available only through their account to attendees.

“Black Future Weekend is an opportunity for our world’s future leaders to network and learn from one another. At Stash, we are thrilled to help each of these attendees invest in themselves and begin the journey to achieve their financial dreams,” said Stash in an official statement to AfroTech. “Stash is committed to closing the racial wealth gap. Whether the market is up or down, this is the right approach and we are here to support every American, and every Black Future Weekend attendee, learn by doing with our investing, banking, and education platform.”

Black Future Weekend

As Black Future Weekend heads into its second year, the conference is transitioning from Atlanta to Miami, energizing the Black and Latinx communities’ interest in the tech space.

“One key distinction is the event is held in Miami. Last year, we were in Atlanta, a steadily expanding tech hub attracting techies, entrepreneurs, and corporations in droves, but this year, we are in an emerging tech hub, ripe for innovation and new talent to enter the tech space. Miami is unique in that it is a gateway for both Black and Latinx talent. While crypto and NFTs are the hot topics in Miami, the local community is still a novice to most tech foundations and trends, if they know about it at all, and I wanted to change that. As a South Florida native, I’ve seen firsthand how innovations and developments are great for the city at large and corporations but are often the opposite for the people who live here — they are left out and pushed aside. So, Black Future Weekend Miami is a clarion call to shift mindsets on what technology of the future is and how the Black community must be a part of it,” said Michelle Ferguson, National Community Initiatives Director of Dream Corps TECH, in a statement to AfroTech.