EAST POINT, Ga. — Emerging 100 South Metro Chapter and The City of East Point partner to host the first-ever of its kind discussion panel concerning the generational issues that have systematically impacted the black community, specifically Black men.
Titled "Shop Talk - Census 2020: How Black Men Can Get Their Fair Cut,” this event will be a virtual ‘barbershop discussion’ on the 2020 Census and its impact on black men.
“So, not everyone can vote for various reasons. Some people are not old enough some people are not American citizens. Some people have criminal records. The Census they can all participate in,” explains Dominic Maldonado, East Point Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Coordinator, and panelist.
“This is one of the few activities that we all can all get a fair cut. We can all get a fair slice of this cake and we can eat it too.”
The roundtable conversation will include both millennial and elder professionals and community members with East Point ties on why it is so important that black men to not leave money on the table in 2020.
Longtime East Point business owner, Jerel Buycks owns and operates Royal Roots Barbershop in a shopping center located at the corner of Headland and Delowe.
‘Close contact’ businesses like Buyck’s which have been severely impacted by the COVID shutdowns, however, the business owner and fellow panelist, remain cautiously optimistic.
“I’m definitely confident in the black community bouncing back from this. It’s going to take us working together and making sure that we're taking our safety. Making safety first priority,” Buycks tells My East Point News.
The panel will include representatives from:
- Atlanta NAACP
- Black Dads Count
- Emerging 100 South Metro Chapter
- Fair Count
- The HUGS Foundation
- New Grant Chapel AME Church
- Royal Roots Barber Shop
- Soul Food Cypher
- U.S. Census Bureau
- 100 Black Men Of America, Inc.
The panel will be moderated by Alex Lima, Partnerships Specialist with the US Census Bureau and Jefferson Park resident.
The event begins promptly on Facebook LIVE on the City of East Point's Facebook page.
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