I Love Black People (ILBP) is a Black-owned tech startup that uses technology to identify and add visibility for public spaces deemed as safe for Black people around the world. As an extension of their on-going work, the Washington, DC-based organization is on a mission to mobilize Black-owned and Black-friendly businesses and 500,000 voters in key battleground states and cities ahead of the Nov. 3 presidential election with their Get Out the Vote (GOTV) Campaign.
The campaign urges people to not only vote, but to vote with Black agenda items and issues in mind such as police brutality, reparations, healthcare access, Zimbabwean economic sanctions etc.
“We must use our vote to fight against social and economic injustices by electing candidates that have a strong agenda on issues that impact Black Americans and Black business owners,” says ILBP co-founder Sinclair Skinner. “The economic sustainability of the Black community relies on our ability to build our own businesses and collectively support Black-owned businesses and institutions.”
In what can be described as “wearable advocacy,” ILBP uses technology to encourage voting through their signature black and white t-shirts equipped with QR codes that can be scanned with any smartphone camera to reveal information on voter registration, early voting and absentee ballot targeted to the geographic location of where the t-shirts are scanned.
Supporters of their work are encouraged to visit ILoveBlackPeople.com to purchase and donate these threads with purpose to outfit volunteers in battleground states including Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.
ILBP is partnering with Black-owned and Black-friendly businesses in eight essential categories (hospitality, beauty, food, finance, education, child care, health and transportation) to distribute the t-shirts to volunteers. The idea is simple. The ambassadors will wear the t-shirts as a way of spreading the messaging about voting, and offer an easy on-the-spot way to get important information. Visit ILoveBlackPeople.com.
