The Charlotte Hornets have announced a new social justice platform and first innovation summit – CLTure

Hornets Sports & Entertainment (HSE) has announced a new Social Justice Platform aimed to bring awareness and resources for economic mobility and racial equity in Charlotte. Back in 2014, a Harvard study ranked Charlotte 50th out the country’s 50 largest cities in economic mobility, and the new initiative plans to address those issues. 

“We are pleased to unveil our full Social Justice Platform as we look to make a meaningful impact in the areas of economic mobility, racial equity and voting,” said Hornets Sports & Entertainment President and Vice Chairman Fred Whitfield in a press release. “We are glad to use our voice to raise awareness and provide support around topics that are so important to our community. While social justice is not a new focus for our organization, we are excited about continuing to be more intentional about how we position our efforts.” 

A new Hornets Innovation Summit invites businesses located within 150 miles of Charlotte to submit pitches for a chance to receive a $15,000 investment from the Charlotte Hornets Foundation. In order to qualify, the business has to be at least 51% operated and controlled by minority group members (individuals who are at least 25% Asian, Black, Hispanic or Native American). Applicants selected will have their one-minute pitch videos posted on hornets.com and social media outlets for fan voting with five finalists presenting their products to a virtual panel in March. The deadline to apply is February 2.

Hornets Sports & Entertainment will also be partnering with The Lonely Entrepreneur– a non-profit that equips entrepreneurs with knowledge and resources to grow businesses– to provide each applicant with one year of free access to the Lonely Entrepreneur Learning Community.

Learn more about HSE’S Social Justice Platform and apply for the Hornets Innovation Summit here.