Businesses now need to take a stance on looting — and small business owners lose to giant corporations either way
"I agree with what the movement is about, just not the violence and the looting," Chan said. "Business owners that come out and complain and say their s--- was destroyed are being labeled as racist because they're saying you care about your property more than the movement.
That's not fair. I'm just trying to protect my business." Some business owners take the opposite stance. Ruhan Islam, the owner of the Gandhi Mahal restaurant in Minneapolis,on social media for how he reacted when his restaurant was burned down at the end of May. "Let my building burn, justice needs to be served, put those officers in jail," Islam said, according to his daughter. Keeana Barber, the CEO of WGB Marketing in Chicago, Illinois, gainedin June after distributing "Black-owned business" signs to business owners in Black Chicago neighborhoods hit hard by property damage in the wake of unrest over George Floyd's murder. Barber told Business Insider in a phone interview that most business owners understand the frustration of the protesters. But she said that doesn't diminish how devastating property damage can be for a small business owner. "We're left to pick up the pieces and figure out how to survive. We don't have the political allies, we don't have the people in Washington that's going to make sure that we get some funding or money. As an entrepreneur, you have a dream, you push and you really give everything that you can," Barber said. Barber also said that rather than being concerned about large corporations getting looted, people should turn their attention to supporting their local small businesses."These bigger companies, they've got every single thing covered. They should be more concerned about small businesses. They might close a couple out of their chain, but for us, this might be our only storefront we have. I only have one office. So if I get hit too hard and I can't recover, I'm out of business. These big boxes, they're gonna be okay," Barber said." Barber said that she's seen more enthusiasm for her signs than she expected, both from Black business owners and from white ones looking to buy Black Lives Matter signs from a Black-owned print shop. Although she started by distributing just 200 free "Black-owned business" signs to Black business owners around Chicago, she's since sent over 2,000 signs to Black business owners in 10 states around the country. The signs are still free, although Barber asks recipients to pay for shipping. Although 2020 has been a heavy year, Barber is optimistic about the potential for change in this moment. She says now more than ever before, she sees more people becoming cognizant of the problems that Black people face and actively working to solve them. "For once people are figuring out it doesn't matter if it's just one transaction, if it's just one march that you show up to, if it's just one person that you reach out and support or something that you share to share this knowledge, everybody understands that they do have play a part in the solution."Get a personalized selection of top stories daily based on your preferences. Sign up now.By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Business Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our
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