Virginia Union University Becomes First HBCU In Virginia To Offer Doula Certification Program

We are giving our flowers to Black leaders who are shaping the future. Established in 2022, the AFROTECH™ Future 50 list will commemorate innovators, visionaries, founders, venture capitalists, technologists, and changemakers in the technology sector who have made historic strides, lifted as they climbed to create a more inclusive future, and are transforming their sectors and communities. AFROTECH™ Future 50 Categories There are five categories for submission. The Dynamic Investors category highlights venture capitalists who have not only driven strong returns but have also championed underrepresented founders in technology. A prime example is Charles Hudson, founder and managing partner of Precursor Ventures, which manages over $175 million in assets and has made more than 413 investments, according to Carta. Next, the Future Makers category will honor Black professionals who have achieved historic firsts, earned industry recognition, launched groundbreaking products, measured...

A Black woman-owned wine brand has secured a sweet victory. Established in 2023, IBest Wines has secured a partnership with American Airlines. The company was launched by Ingrid Best, who carries two decades of experience in the wine and spirits sector from companies such as Diageo, Moët Hennessy, and Bacardi, the company website mentions. She entered the industry as a brand ambassador, assisting in the launch of a small rum brand for Diageo in San Francisco, CA, New York, and Miami, FL, she said during an interview on “Way Up With Angela Yee.” She later rose up the ranks in the aforementioned companies, holding titles that include Regional Marketing Manager for Hennessy (2013-2016), Brand Director for D’USSE (2019-2020), and CE’s EVP, Global Head of Marketing Spirits (2021). Her career milestones include managing two of the largest venture joint spirit partnerships. “I was so fortunate to be exposed to every facet of the business, which typically, in an ambassador role, you aren’t...

The blessings are still pouring in for The Puddery founder, Janel Prator. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Prator reaped the benefits of the Keith Lee effect after her pudding shop, The Puddery, located in Pearland, TX, went viral in a food review shared on his TikTok platform, which currently boasts 17 million followers, on Nov. 23, 2023. Lee claims Prator had made over 13 posts inviting the foodie guru to her restaurant, which was on the verge of closing. On some days, she recalls only having two customers per day. Lee stated the shop’s strawberry banana pudding was the best he’s had. His review was seen by millions of customers who flocked to support the store. Today, The Puddery is thriving and has since expanded to its second location. Prator refers to Lee’s initial visit as “an opportunity of a lifetime for a business like mine,” according to Blavity. Prator’s blessings are still multiplying. In fact, Keith Lee surprised her with a $50,000 grant in partnership with Toast...

On March 15, 2025, the U.S. bombed Houthi terrorist targets across Yemen. But two hours before the world knew, a Signal message had already mapped the strike. The sender? Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The recipients? Top intelligence officials, but also Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic — a journalist inadvertently folded into the highest levels of American military planning. This wasn’t a clandestine leak. It was a raw, unfiltered display of the fragility of power in the digital age. It was a breach not orchestrated by a hostile foreign actor but self-inflicted — executed casually, almost thoughtlessly, by the nation’s top security officials on a consumer messaging app. For those of us who approach these matters with a deep understanding of U.S. statecraft and a critical perspective shaped by intellectual and resistance traditions, the story may demand more than mere procedural outrage. It calls for an unflinching analysis of how an empire, when unmoored from...

For decades, Ben & Jerry’s has been more than just an ice cream company — it’s been a loud, proud, and unapologetic advocate for progressive causes. From climate justice to racial equity, the brand has built an identity around speaking truth to power. But now, that identity is at the center of a corporate power struggle. Ben & Jerry’s is accusing its parent company, Unilever, of firing CEO David Stever, not because of poor performance but because he refused to back down from the company’s social mission. According to the New York Times, the lawsuit, filed in a Manhattan, NY, federal court, claims that Unilever violated a key part of its 2000 merger agreement by removing Stever without advisory board approval. What started as a quirky Vermont ice cream shop with a social conscience has now turned into a legal battleground, with Unilever allegedly trying to muzzle the very activism that made Ben & Jerry’s a cultural force. A Brewing Corporate Clash Ben & Jerry’s alleges that...

Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. The tech industry has long had an obsession with youth. This is seen in how the industry conducts itself, who investors look to invest in, how people look at hiring in the world of startups, as well as which programs are being targeted by DOGE, and which ones aren’t, as they look to make the government more efficient. Over the last few months, the Department of Government Efficiency has aggressively looked for waste and fraud within the federal government. It started with organizations that do not come to mind for the average American, like the United States Agency For International Development, or USAID, which focuses on deploying aid to foreign countries for a variety of efforts centered around health, disaster aid, and economic development. DOGE came in like a wrecking ball to the organization, and as reported by ABC News in February, 4,080 employees worldwide were placed on leave and an...

Entrepreneur Evan Fay has a new venture launching. In 2024, Fay, a U.S. Air Force veteran and California native with experience in real estate, celebrated the grand opening of his French-inspired coffee shop, Café Noir, in North Detroit, MI. He and his business partner , Asher Van Sickle, opened the shop to “provide a welcoming space for people to connect, socialize, and build community,” the Detroit Metro Times reports. “Yes, we want to offer coffee and really good food but we also want to be community-centric… We just want to offer a space that is inviting and if you need to use it or there’s a private event or whatever, we want to make sure that we’re that space,” Fay said at the time, per the outlet. “We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback, a lot of people have been very excited about coming to the space and showing support. We’re really thankful to the community in the North End. We’re really excited. We’re here to be consistent and be available for people to come.” View this...

JPMorgan Chase is altering the name of what was formerly its DEI program. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, JPMorgan Chase seemingly positioned itself with the stance that it would uphold diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts despite pressures from the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), a conservative nonprofit organization. There has been a sweeping shift with many companies aligning themselves with policies from President Donald Trump’s administration, which has dismantled DEI programs and initiatives in the federal government through executive orders. “Bring them on,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2025. “We are going to continue to reach out to the Black community, the Hispanic community, the LGBT community , the veterans community.” The following month, JPMorgan Chase joined companies such as Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America in removing or toning down language...