By Norman Rich for the NNPA Newswire

There’s no secret that economies across our nation — even the world — have been devastated by the impact of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. However, without intervention, the impact on Black-owned businesses will be especially devastating.

To combat the resulting uncertainty and help ensure that Black-owned businesses can sustain themselves and survive the pandemic, a team of influencers and public figures have joined together under the hashtag #Donate1post.

The National Newspaper Publishers Association has agreed to partner with #Donate1post, providing access to our digital and print platforms in order to enhance the value delivered to Black-owned businesses by the many other influencers and public figures participating in the program.

Our first contribution will be a livestream on Friday, April 24, 2020, featuring social media influencer, wardrobe stylist and brand content creator, Brittany Hampton and Martin Ekechukwu, a serial entrepreneur, influencer and the Co-founder of WHTWRKS. Hampton will be highlighting SoulDope.org and Ekechukwu will highlight Adjourn Teahouse (@adjournteahouse). They will be interviewed by the NNPA’s award-winning senior correspondent, Stacy Brown.

Viewers on our Facebook platforms will be able to submit questions and comments to the panel during the livestream. However, if you miss the event, you’ll still be able to watch the recorded video on Facebook, BlackPressUSA.com and our Vimeo page at Vimeo.com/nnpa.

Martin Ekechukwu, who launched #Donate1post, is a serial entrepreneur, influencer, and Co-founder of WHTWRKS. Ekechukwu’s background includes traditional training at some of the largest CPG companies worldwide and considers himself a hybrid trained marketer. Ekechukwu has worked directly with Def Jam Recordings on emerging artist strategy and created innovation opportunities for artists such as Snoop Dog, Janet Jackson, and Sean “Puffy” Combs.

In 2013, Martin co-founded WHTWRKS, a marketing company that focuses on bridging the gap between brands and their target audience through the creation of compelling content and experiential events.

Brittany Hampton was introduced to the fashion world at a young age as a child model for big brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Nautica, and American Girl and is best known for becoming Diane Von Furstenberg’s very first global brand ambassador after winning the first season of House of DVF in 2014.

Edechukwu and Hampton are part of #Donate1post’s more than 70 confirmed influencers, generating a total of $200,000+ worth of free publicity to small businesses nationwide.  Many of these firms are small, “mom and pop” micro-businesses that struggle to stay afloat even during the best of times.

Our new economic uncertainty is driven by the reality that, despite the best efforts of civic leaders, economists, researchers, scientists and medical professionals, the virus is in control. According to a recent article by global consultancy McKinsey & Company, “The threat of COVID-19 to lives and livelihoods will fully resolve only when enough people are immune to the disease to blunt transmission, either from a vaccine or direct exposure. Until then, governments that want to restart their economies must have public-health systems that are strong enough to detect and respond to cases.”

This makes the efforts of Hampton, Edechukwu and other #Donate1post influencers and public figures like Angela Rye (@angelarye), Queen Khamyra (@queenkhamyra), Woah Vicky (@imwoahvicky), Asia Irving (@asiairving), and actor Sarunas Jackson (@ronejae) from the hit show HBO show Insecure so essential.

Each influencer will help by donating one (or more) post ($3,000+ value per post) to help promote selected small businesses to their thousands and millions of followers.

For more information about #Donate1post and to find out how you can participate in helping Black-owned businesses during the pandemic, tune in to watch the stream or visit the program’s Facebook page.

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