Solomon Herbert

As the travel arena responds to the efforts of some elected officials to strike down and eliminate affirmative action programs, we at Black Meetings & Tourism felt the time was right to examine the industry’s commitment to furthering and promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. So we posed a series of questions to leaders of four major industry organizations to get their take on these serious and pressing issues. Below are the questions, followed by their answers I the own words. 1.

If there were an extraordinarily compelling moment in time for African -Americans to tell their own stories, more than ever, it is NOW! On July 4, 2026, something phenomenal will occur in our country and we are all positioned to be a significant part of it. On that day, the U.S.A. will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence……. the Semiquincentennial.

Our dear brother Roland Martin, on his Roland Martin Unfiltered TV Show, recently addressed the lack of ad spending by corporate giants like Pepsico with Black-owned media. While his commentary did not specifically deal with the travel/meetings/hospitality industry, the same principles accurately apply. He quoted several studies, including one that stated while Blacks comprise 13% of the population, Black-owned media only receives 1% of the advertising spend.