Facebook announced that a new update which included resources for people to identify their Page as a Black or minority-owned business.
With regard to the recent ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement, Facebook decided to incorporate tools into their website to help the community and allow Black-owned business to feature on the ‘Businesses Nearby’ platform.
They even stated that any business that was majority Black-owned which had less than 50 employees was eligible to appear on the page.
By looking at the label, people that wanted to support the business could do so without any uncertainty.
Facebook clarified that the diverse business categories would be associated with business Pages and not people, in order to give the owners, the freedom to edit their page and protect their privacy.
They also mentioned that eventually, they wanted to do the same for other small businesses.
They acknowledged the systemic racism and other barriers that Black-owned businesses faced not only over the years but also during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier this year Facebook had even launched the ‘$100 million global grant program’ to help mom and pop shops survive through the pandemic. In a statement, they said: “Of that, we’re allocating $40 million in grants to support 10,000 Black-owned businesses in the US.”
They added: “We know every day counts, so we’re partnering with Accenture and the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) to get these grants to Black-owned businesses quickly.”
Facebook also opened grant applications for Black creators, dedicating $25 million to support them on social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook.
They said: “The program will provide them with access to funding, education, development resources and local activities to help them grow their community and establish a business across our apps.”
Facebook is doing everything they can to support black creators and small business owners to fight racial injustice. Right from introducing new Giphy sticker packs in support of Black-owned businesses to creating a page on the Facebook app called Lift Black Voices “to highlight stories from Black people, share educational resources and inspire people to take action through fundraising for racial justice causes.”
Do you think that other social media accounts should follow in Facebook’s footsteps?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!