Monday's View from a Pew: If My Money Ain’t Good Enough, Neither Am I

Listen… lean in close, because this isn’t just a message — it’s a wake-up call, an alarm clock ringing in the early morning hours of our collective destiny. And the snooze button has run out.

We are living in a moment where everything we fought for is on the chopping block — voting rights, fair hiring practices, equal opportunity, curriculum that tells the truth, and the basic dignity our ancestors died to secure. And while the forces against us are working together with military precision, too many of us are still operating like scattered islands instead of a nation of purpose.

Let’s walk through this slowly.

WHEN THE COUNTRY MADE ITS CHOICE

We watched America elect a man who couldn’t pass a background check at McDonald’s, who couldn’t rent an apartment without someone vouching for him, who wouldn’t qualify for half the jobs our young men get rejected from daily. A man with more indictments than integrity — yet he became the most powerful person on the planet.

Don’t miss what that says about us, and don’t miss what it says about this country.

The election wasn’t a referendum on him — it was a referendum on us. It told us what many already knew: there are people in this country who would rather burn the house down than share the table.

And the moment the dust settled, they went straight for DEI — the very policies that opened doors for our children, leveled playing fields for our graduates, and forced corporations to acknowledge our humanity.

They didn’t attack crime, poverty, gun violence, or infrastructure. They attacked inclusion.

That tells you everything.

WHEN THE CORPORATIONS SHOWED THEIR HAND

While we’re out here spending billions on hair, nails, food, clothes, entertainment, and convenience, the same companies that profit from our culture and our dollars are rolling back the very protections that helped our people climb the ladder.

They still want our money — but not our presence.
They want our spending — but not our leadership.
They want our flavor — but not our fingerprints.

But family, we must get this in our spirit: I’m too Black, too proud, and too aware to keep financing my own disrespect.

WHY WE MUST STOP MAKING EVERYONE RICH BUT OURSELVES

White folks understand something we often ignore: money is power. Money is leverage. Money is a vote with decimals.

They will boycott, redirect, unify, and strategize around their interests. They invest in their own businesses. They hire their own people. They circulate their money within their own community.

We, on the other hand, give our fruit to the oppressor. We run from the Black businesses struggling to survive but flock to the corporations that wouldn’t hire our children to sweep the floor. We tear down the very leaders who stand up for us — because they’re not perfect — while voting for people who don’t even pretend to care.

We leave the Black church that carried us, fed us, covered our kids, bailed us out when the lights were off, and raised scholarships for our babies… all to sit quietly in a White church where they don’t even notice when we’re missing.

THE HARD TRUTH ABOUT OUR SUPPORT

Let’s tell the truth: We are the only people who will support others while being unsupported. We are the only people who will defend others while being disrespected. We are the only people who give loyalty without receiving equity.

We’ll march for everyone else but won’t stand up for our own businesses. We’ll go viral for drama but go silent on solutions. We’ll criticize the Black entrepreneur for being “too slow,” “too busy,” or “not perfect,” yet we’ll wait in line 45 minutes with no attitude for a Popeyes chicken sandwich.

Let me say that again in case you didn't hear me:
We demand excellence from Black businesses while settling for mediocrity from everyone else.

THE ECONOMICS OF SELF-RESPECT

If a business won’t hire us, respect us, or acknowledge our humanity — then why are we financing it? If my Black face isn’t good enough to be on your payroll, then my Black dollar isn’t good enough to be in your register. Stop spending your money where you’re not welcome. Stop seeking validation from people who profit off your silence. Stop running from the very community that has carried you for generations.

Do your own nails for a few months — see what happens to their prices. Buy your hair from your own people — watch how quickly our supply stores grow. Fix your plate at your own restaurants — watch how your neighborhood transforms. Invest in Black banks, Black realtors, Black contractors, Black tutors, Black mechanics, Black restaurants, Black creators — watch how fast our children’s futures brighten.

Economic power is not a dream — it’s a decision.

A SPIRITUAL CALL TO ACTION

God didn’t say, “If their people would humble themselves…” God said, “If MY people…”

The healing of the land starts with us. Not Congress. Not corporations. Not celebrities. Us.

If we turn… If we unite… If we support each other… If we stop feeding the systems that starve us… Then — and only then — does God promise to heal.

MY FINAL WORD

My people, we don’t need permission. We don’t need approval. We don’t need anybody to validate what God already placed inside us.

We just need each other.

It’s time to wake up. It’s time to link arms. It’s time to stand together. It’s time to love each other loudly, intentionally, unapologetically.

Because when Black dollars unite, Black families rise. When Black businesses thrive, Black communities stabilize. When Black people support Black people… nobody can stop us.

And that’s the holy truth — straight from this pew.