Being black in Portland?
It’s complicated.
Are we residing in the least diverse major city in America? Plenty of data suggests as much. Does the city have a fraught history with welcoming racial minorities? It’s been documented. However, though there is clear unparalleled disproportion in the makeup of our city’s race demographic, there’s something profound that’s missed regarding the city’s black residents:
There are nearly 37,000 of us
And none us are ready to settle for a city where we can’t collectively be ourselves. But even for us it’s not always easy to look around and see ourselves. It’s time for a change, and we aspire to help facilitate the change we seek.
PDX Black Excellence is a community organization cultural movement to connect and support Portland’s black residents and advocates. Through select services and curated events we believe we can create a unique experience in Portland that fosters social and professional networking, new relationships, and new understanding.
From executives to artists, students to entrepreneurs: everyone is welcome. We believe that embracing diversity, from the scale of a city to a single Saturday night, is at the center of fostering new innovation, new business, new collaboration, and new opportunity.
Connecting and Supporting Black Portland
It can feel lonely out there if you’re in the dark about how many resources and supporters you really have behind you. Our hope is that with the help of our spotlight, black Portlanders can fully see one another, then shine even brighter together.
Our Team
