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Bestseller
BestsellerE-book
Author Banks, Patricia Ann, author.

Title Black Culture, Inc. : how ethnic community support pays for corporate America / Patricia A. Banks.

Publication Info. Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, [2022]

Item Status

Description 1 online resource (xiii, 217 pages) : illustrations.
Physical Medium polychrome
Description text file
Series Culture and economic life
Culture and economic life.
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents Diversity capital -- The racial return -- Racism rehab -- Cultivating consumers -- The party of the year -- Gospel and the golden arches -- #AFROPUNKWESEEYOU -- Branding diversity.
Summary "A surprising and fascinating look at how Black culture has been leveraged by corporate America, this book addresses some of today's most pressing public debates around allyship and diversity. Open the brochure for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and you'll see logos for corporations like American Express. Visit the website for the Apollo Theater and you'll notice acknowledgments to corporations like Coca Cola and Citibank. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, owe their very existence to large corporate donations from companies like General Motors. And while we can easily make sense of the need for such funding to keep cultural spaces afloat, less obvious are the reasons that corporations give to them. In Black Culture, Inc. Patricia A. Banks interrogates the notion that such giving is completely altruistic, and argues for a deeper understanding of the hidden transactions being conducted that render corporate America dependent on Black culture. Drawing on a range of sources, such as public relations and advertising texts on corporate cultural patronage and observations at sponsored cultural events, Banks argues that black cultural patronage profits firms by signaling that they value diversity, equity, and inclusion. By functioning in this manner, support of black cultural initiatives affords these companies something called "diversity capital," an increasingly valuable commodity in today's business landscape. While this does not necessarily detract from the social good that cultural patronage does, it reveals its secret cost: ethnic community support may serve to obscure an otherwise poor track record with social justice. Banks deftly weaves innovative theory with detailed observations and a discerning critical gaze at the various agendas infiltrating memorials, museums, and music festivals meant to celebrate Black culture. At a time when accusations of discriminatory practices are met with immediate legal and social condemnation, the insights offered here are urgent and necessary"-- Provided by publisher.
Local Note eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America
Subject Art patronage -- United States.
Art patronage.
United States.
African American arts -- Finance.
African American arts.
Finance.
Ethnic arts -- United States -- Finance.
Ethnic arts.
Corporate sponsorship -- United States.
Corporate sponsorship.
Corporations -- Public relations -- United States.
Corporations -- Public relations.
Social responsibility of business -- United States.
Social responsibility of business.
Genre/Form Electronic books.
Other Form: Print version: Banks, Patricia Ann. Black Culture, Inc. Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2022 9781503606777 (DLC) 2021034836
ISBN 9781503631250 electronic book
1503631257 electronic book
9781503606777 hardcover