Earl G. Graves: “The publication was committed to the task of educating, inspiring and uplifting its readers.”

From “Earl G. Graves, Black Enterprise magazine founder and black publishing pioneer, dies at age 85” by Samara Lynn on abcnews.com:

Graves launched Black Enterprise in 1970, building it “from a single-magazine publishing company 50 years ago, to a diversified multimedia business spreading the message of financial empowerment to more than 6 million African Americans through print, digital, broadcast and live-event platforms,” according to Black Enterprise senior vice president and chief content officer Derek T. Dingle.

An Army veteran and HBCU graduate of Morgan State University, Graves also served as the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s administrative assistant for three years. . . .

He wrote The New York Times best-seller, “How to Succeed in Business Without Being White.”

Graves explained in his book why he decided to start Black Enterprise magazine.

“The time was ripe for a magazine devoted to economic development in the African American community,” he wrote. “The publication was committed to the task of educating, inspiring and uplifting its readers.” My goal was to show them how to thrive professionally, economically and as proactive, empowered citizens.”. . .

In his later years, Graves often wrote editorials for Black Enterprise on issues ranging from the need for black representation in corporate boardrooms to health care access as a fundamental right. He pushed others in the African American community to be entrepreneurs.

“We must focus more attention on building scalable, black-owned businesses in industries that are most likely to create jobs for people who are disproportionately unemployed, such as African Americans, particularly in urban areas,” he wrote in one of his opinion pieces.