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You may or may not know us; but, I assure you, you know our industry. You've laughed, you've cried, and you've celebrated in it. It is an industry full of life, creativity, and vibrance. An industry literally made for your enjoyment. It is the industry known as hospitality; and, it was here that we were born.

We are B4Change. We are four hospitality professionals with over 5 decades of experience in some of the most well known bars, restaurants, and nightclubs from the Midwest to Hawaii and the West coast. We are here to achieve our goal of bettering our industry and opening doors for marginalized people. 

But we need your help. As we work towards gaining momentum and funding, we need a little push from our friends. We are in desperate need of web design, branding and logo work, professional advice, and other startup fees. In addition, we have been running a clothing drive and giveaway in the Tenderloin that now has to be relocated and all of the items we were borrowing must be returned. We want to continue this event, but require money to do so. As I'm sure you've guessed, we do this work on top of our other jobs. All expenses are coming out of our own pockets, and there are expenses beyond our reach. Anything and everything helps, we promise.

During the Black Lives Matter resurgence of 2020 -- a public outcry in direct response to the murder of George Floyd -- we as industry leaders of our craft responded to the call to action. We knew racism and racial bias were alive and well and we were not going to stand idly. We knew no one person could do everything, but that every person could do something. So we did. We formed a sort of ad hoc DEI group within the organization we worked for. They were incredibly supportive, but SIP stifled our employment with them during that time and our DEI group sputtered. So then we decided to take greater action. We decided to become change agents within the industry we so love. 

We analyzed and critiqued every aspect of bars and restaurants-- from the decor to the staff, from the language in new hire ads to the language in new hire packets, from company cultures to company management, from the history of bar styles to the history of spirits, from community impacts to community outreach. At the core of our brainstorming, we realized that the hospitality industry did not hold space for these types of discussions. So we made space. We started a nonprofit.

We at B4Change aim to have honest and meaningful conversations addressing themes within our industry that perpetuate systemic racism in our society. We offer BIPOC inclusivity consultation geared towards the hospitality industry in the areas of language, optics, and practice. The hospitality industry is the lifeblood and identity of any community. By recognizing our place in society as tastemakers and influencers, the hospitality industry must realize the power and responsibility we possess to make a change within our industry. The goal is to create the safest and most equitable spaces for everyone. We at B4Change offer guidance and stewardship to help establishments achieve this goal.

So far we've accomplished quite a bit. We held a weeklong social media forum addressing racism and cultural appropriation within tiki culture in partnership with a well-known tiki bar in Oakland. We've participated in national speaking engagements with like-minded organizations addressing racial issues within the hospitality industry. We held an event that raised over $3000 in donations for The East Oakland Collective. And lastly, our dearest of endeavors, we hold a monthly clothing drive in the Tenderloin, in partnership with Feed the People Collective, where we distribute free clean clothes (and FTPC distributes hygiene kits and water) to anyone in need.

Thank you for taking the time to consider helping us reach our financial goal and support our vision for a more inclusive future for this industry.

“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

In community,

B4Change