Alaska Black CaucusEvery Friday in the month of August, ABC asked that people only spend money at Black-owned businesses. They even kicked off the event at the beginning of the month with a soul food mixer at Roscoe’s Catfish and Barbeque.
“We are honored to be a part of this, and we have something each Friday of this month; we will have deals going on,” The Drip owner Rafael Moore said. Green said that his reason for not participating in Blackout Friday is he feels that just one day isn’t enough. Green believes it just doesn’t go far enough to put the spotlight on one day because the Black community has not changed its mindset.
“Slow progress is better than no progress,” Moore said. “You always hear the saying that a lot of progress has been made but there’s a lot more that needs to be made. How is that going to happen if you are not making any advances to make it happen?” Moore’s wife Mychal says growing up in Alaska, she never had conversations about Historically Black Colleges and Universities or supporting Black businesses. Her dad owned a tow truck company and was never highlighted as a Black-owned company.