Cummins Provides $3 Million to Aid Local Black-Owned Small Businesses

Much needed help is coming to small Black-owned businesses in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Memphis, Tennessee; Indianapolis and Columbus, Indiana. 

Small Black-owned businesses have an opportunity to receive grants from Cummins Inc., through Community Development Financial Institutes (CDFI), non-profit charitable organizations and municipal partners. 

“Teamwork, Caring, Integrity, and Diversity & Inclusion are cornerstone values of Cummins, and connecting with local organizations that share these values was important to ensure these funds are distributed properly,” said Shon Wright, Vice President of Cummins Turbo Technologies and Economic Empowerment CARE Workstream Leader. “Furthermore, the community partners we identified share our understanding that when we aid the Black community, we in fact support the larger community.”  

The Metropolitan Economic Development Association (Meda) in Minneapolis, River City Capital Investment in Memphis, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) in partnership with the Indy Black Chamber of Commerce in Indianapolis and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Columbus/Bartholomew Branch with the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce will disburse capital to Black-owned businesses in their respective communities. 

Cummins launched Cummins Advocating for Racial Equity (CARE) last July as another step to help undo the systemic discrimination against the Black community in the U.S. One of the four identified areas the company wants to impact is creating empowerment by building Black wealth and income.

CDFIs are private financial institutions that exist to deliver affordable lending to low-income and low-wealth communities. By helping bring these targeted communities into the economic mainstream, CDFIs aid in job growth and economic empowerment for underserved and underrepresented markets across the country.  

Learn more at cummins.com.