Tennis superstar and philanthropist Serena Williams is giving back to underserved communities by backing leading rent reporter fintech company Esusu. According to a press release, Williams participated in the company’s $10 million Series A funding round — led by Motley Fool Ventures — with an undisclosed “significant investment” through her venture capital firm, Serena Ventures. In speaking with CNBC, Williams shared that she started her company to “invest in diverse founders and early-stage companies that outperform and generate impact, while at the same time empowering others and creating opportunities” — thus identifying Esusu as one of those very companies. “Esusu is really focused on credit building and creating pathways to financial inclusion for not only working families but for individuals as well,” she shared in a press statement. “Their services also make rent reporting seamless – finally giving renters credit for what often is their largest expense every month. Last year,...

As civil unrest continues to grow in Chicago following the death of George Floyd, a group of Chicago teens is fighting for social justice in a West Side food desert. By the Hand Club for Kids —a non-profit organization that empowers underserved communities—launched an initiative to transform a previously looted liquor store into a pop-up fresh food market, reports Block Club Chicago. Led by young men and women from Chicago’s Austin community, the project is a result of the residents’ frustration at the lack of healthy food resources in the area. When offered to attend a roundtable event to air their grievances, local kids were activated to create substantial change in their neighborhood. “What I heard coming out of that was that students wanted to take all those raw and powerful emotions and turn them into something good and do something from a social justice standpoint,” said Donnita Travis, executive director of the group. “The kids took the idea and ran with it.” View this post...