Beyoncé and the NAACP Have Launched a Fund to Support Black-Owned Small Businesses

• Beyoncé's charitable initiative BeyGOOD (opens in new tab) is partnering with the NAACP to help fund Black-owned small businesses across the U.S.
  
• Grants of $10,000 will be given to businesses in Houston, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis.
  
• If you're a Black small business owner, apply here (opens in new tab) before the July 18 deadline.

Beyoncé's been working incredibly hard through her charity initiative BeyGOOD: In April, she donated $6 million (opens in new tab) to support underserved communities of color amid the coronavirus pandemic, while she and mother Tina Knowles-Lawson subsequently worked to provide Black communities in her Houston hometown with access to COVID-19 testing. Now, she's teaming up with the NAACP to support Black-owned small businesses across the U.S., offering grants of $10,000 to businesses in Houston, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis.

"Over the last couple of months, the pandemic and outpours for justice throughout the Black community and across the country has been felt in every imaginable area of our lives, including in how our local businesses continue to operate," the NAACP said in a statement (opens in new tab). "The NAACP is delighted to administer a meaningful program in partnership with BeyGOOD’s Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund to assist our small business communities that have been directly impacted by the recent events across the country."

Beyoncé's latest single, "Black Parade," raised funds for the BeyGOOD Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund (opens in new tab), while she also shared the Black Owned Everything (opens in new tab) directory of Black-owned businesses on her website, founded by her stylist Zerina Akers.

Are you a Black owner of a small business in one of the five eligible cities? You can apply here (opens in new tab), before the July 18 deadline. If you're successful, you'll be notified on July 31 on Beyonce.com. Wishing you luck!

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