Shaunna was reorganizing her home office and happened to put her hands on the book “Our Black Year” by Maggie Anderson (2012). In short, Maggie and her spouse John -- a middle-class, relatively successful African American couple in Chicago -- attempted to buy from only Black-owned businesses for a full year. Yeah...it’s a notable and altruistic goal, but an almost impossible one given that lack of infrastructure and lack of investment in Black-owned supply chains.

The author coined the phrase “conscious consumerism”, and we take it a step further. It’s our hope that endurance sport athletes employ “critical consumerism” with their purchases and investments.

We bat around questions like “How do we consume differently?” “How do we consume consciously even when it comes with inconvenience?” “At what point do we divest from vendors, partners, localities, states, and organizations whose values align with ours?” Maybe more importantly, “At what point do we force the hands of endurance sport businesses out of neutral, comfortable spaces in order to take a stand for values that are paramount to us?”

Take a listen to Episode 55 as we consider options of how to support ethically-aligned businesses and organizations and divest from those who do not serve the greater interests of the systemically excluded.

My Black Year: Maggie Anderson at TEDxGrandRapids

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