Spend in the Black

CTL-E-5073 · Organization · civic · 2025–present

VERIFIED evidence grade of this record

Faith-led economic initiative founded by Rev. Dr. Charlie E. Dates and Salem Baptist Church of Chicago (launched 2025) organizing large-scale marketplaces of 100+ Black-owned businesses along 75th Street on the South Side, framed as a long-term strategy for generational wealth.

The record

• Also known as: Spend in the Black campaign, Spend in the Black Commerce Corridor

Notes

Faith leaders explicitly frame economic engagement as spiritual and communal responsibility (Word In Black). The initiative's church-led model connects directly to the CTL 'Black Wealth in the Pews' thesis: the sanctuary as economic infrastructure.

Relationships

• Chatham — located in
  Marketplace events staged along the 75th Street corridor (Chatham / Greater Grand Crossing).
• Greater Grand Crossing — located in
  75th Street corridor sits in Greater Grand Crossing (per Chicago Magazine's bakery geography).
• Rev. Dr. Charlie E. Dates — led by
  Founded and led by Rev. Dr. Charlie E. Dates.
• South Side — located in
  A South Side faith-led economic initiative.

Referenced by

• Rev. Dr. Charlie E. Dates — founded → this record
• Rev. Dr. Charlie E. Dates — affiliated with → this record
• Stephanie Hart — affiliated with → this record

Sources

• Black Enterprise — 'Black Churches Lead Spend In The Black Movement'
• Word In Black — ''Spend in the Black' Turns Faith Into Economic Power' (March 2026)
• ABC7 Chicago (via TikTok) — 'started last year after the rollback of DEI funding'
• WLS-TV / internewscast.com — 'Revitalizing Chicago's South Side: Spend in the Black Campaign' (2026)
• WLS-TV / ABC7 — Ald. William Hall & Dr. Charlie Dates interview on the Chicago effort
• IVP press kit — Rev. Dr. Charlie Edward Dates bio (Spend in the Black Commerce Corridor initiative)
• Samford University — 2023 Nelson Lecture announcement (Dates bio)
• Word In Black — 'Holiday Shopping Boycott Fights Trump With the Power of the Purse' (Dec 2025, national context)
• CTL knowledge graph CTL-E-1343 — 'Don't Spend Your Money Where You Can't Work' campaign (identity disambiguation) (primary source)
• CTL knowledge graph CTL-E-3547 — Brown Sugar Bakery (participant cross-reference) (primary source)

Record CTL-E-5073 · CultureTechLens Knowledge Graph · evidence grade: VERIFIED · 10 sources (2 primary) · 7 mapped relationships · CTL research: CHURCH-WEALTH-001.
Directory: all entity records · the knowledge graph

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