DAVENPORT, Iowa — People are encouraged to start shopping at black-owned businesses Sunday.
The QC Empowerment Network is hosting its second open-air market on July 26 from 4 to 7 p.m. It's happening at the Freight House Farmers Market in Davenport.
Organizer Tracy White says they're featuring several dozen black-owned businesses, from painter to real estate agents. It's a way to expose people to these business owners by building connections between them and new customers.
White adds it's a way to fight some of the financial and social disparities within the black community.
"You have to be intentional, right?," White says, "because as I said, not everyone has a storefront or a brick and mortar you can walk into and shop. So we want people to not just shop now because it's a hashtag or it's a trend but to understand what services that are being offered in our community and then be intentional about shopping with a black-owned business."
The open-air market happens the last Sunday of every month this summer from 4 to 7 p.m. The QC Empowerment Network is also planning events for August, which is black-owned business month.