Black Celebs Support Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala Raising $3M for Black-Owned Businesses, ‘We Are Nobody’s DEI Hire’

The fourth annual Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala raised money for Black-owned businesses while taking a few jabs at the current attacks against DEI initiatives.

Ciara, Kelly Rowland, Law Roach, and more Black elites were present for the fourth annual Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala, which successfully raised $3 million to support Black-owned businesses.

The gala took place on Saturday at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles, where Fifteen Perfect Pledge founder Aurora James stressed the importance of the gala amid Donald Trump’s fierce attacks against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

“This is exactly the time we need to show up and continue to speak out,” James said, as cited by WWD.

Following Trump’s return to the White House, where he’s blamed DEI initiatives for recent tragedies, including a deadly plane crash in Washington, D.C., and wildfires that devastated Los Angeles, James urged attendees to stay resilient. She encouraged continued support for initiatives like the Fifteen Percent Pledge, which she launched as a nonprofit in 2020 to advocate for major retailers and corporations to allocate 15 percent of their purchasing power to Black-owned businesses, historically underfunded and underrepresented in the marketplace.

“Each and every one of us, our stories, our pasts, our cultures and identities, are part of the fabric that makes America great. Dare I say more than great, we make it f–king spectacular,” James told the crowd of entertainment, fashion, and business elite.

“We are nobody’s DEI hire. This country in its best form is a product of each of our beautiful and individual contributions. Never, ever, ever let another person tell you otherwise. We belong, you belong, all of our children belong here.”

The stars came out to support the fourth annual gala, including Kim Kardashian, Teyana Taylor, Jesse Williams, Keke Palmer; artists Amy Sherald and Mickalene Thomas; CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year Rachel Scott of Diotima; beauty mogul Danessa Myricks; Tatcha founder Vicky Tsai; model Amber Valletta; Wayman Bannerman and Micah McDonald; celebrity colorist Kadi Lee, facialist Shani Darden, and many more.

Business mogul and Fifteen Percent Pledge chairwoman Emma Grede shared how well the initiative is doing despite corporations rolling back DEI efforts in response to conservative opposition.

“We’ve created the potential to shift $17 billion in revenue to Black-owned businesses,” Grede highlighted the growing collaborations with digital retailers and their efforts to help founders leverage the power of AI.

“This organization is so consequential, especially now when everything’s in question, and it shouldn’t be,” said creative director June Ambrose. “At the end of the day, these entrepreneurs just want their fair share of the real estate. And color, the fact we have to talk about it, means there is something wrong.”

The Pledge granted $200,000 to three businesses: luxury jeweler Bernard James, specialty tea brand Brooklyn Tea, and RedDrop, a period products company dedicated to normalizing puberty education.

“To be validated and seen by your own people is something,” RedDrop chief impact officer Dana Roberts said.

“We have sacrificed so much, but every day, we do this work to change generations of girls, especially in the world we live in today.”

“Thank god. We needed this,” Brooklyn Tea cofounder Jamila Wright added. “All these dresses are very pretty, and all this food is very cute, but being a Black business, we struggle. We struggle to get capital and loans.”