On Jan. 1, I began
part one of my “New Black Wall Streets” series featuring the Tucker Law Group as an exemplary Black-owned business that should be patronized by Black folks. And on Jan. 15 of last year, I wrote an article entitled “Black Fraternities & Sororities Must Stop Making White Convention Centers Rich.” Today — because January is the birth month of most of the so-called Black Greek letter organizations- I’m combining the aforementioned two articles to issue a clarion call to those organizations to not only support Black businesses but to become one.
Phi Beta Sigma celebrated its 103rd anniversary on Jan. 9. Delta Sigma Theta commemorated its 104th anniversary on Jan. 13. Alpha Kappa Alpha honored its 109th anniversary on Jan. 15. Zeta Phi Beta lauded its 97th anniversary on Jan. 16. Iota Phi Theta, Sigma Gamma Rho, Omega Psi Phi, and Alpha Phi Alpha (which is the first of the Divine Nine, having been founded in 1906) will grandly hold their 54th, 95th, 106th, and 111th anniversary events on Sept. 19, Nov. 12, Nov. 17, and Dec. 4 respectively. Back on Jan. 5, Kappa Alpha Psi, of which I am a proud member, extolled its 106th anniversary and in the Philadelphia region recently held a typically suave, stylish, and swanky Founders Day Banquet at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino. But we can do better. In fact, all Black fraternities and sororities can — and must — do better.
In my Jan. 15 column, here’s what I wrote: “Instead of us, members of the Divine Nine, i.e., the organization of Black fraternities and sororities officially known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council (founded in 1930), constantly giving our money to white convention centers and hotels in order to hold banquets, weddings, conferences, and similar gatherings, why don’t we all come together and build our own damn convention center and hotel? The cost is absolutely no problem. In fact, the Baltimore Convention Center and Exhibition Hall, for example, cost only $200 million to build along with another $200 million for the cost of the adjacent and enclosed skywalk-connected Baltimore Hilton Hotel (for a total of $400 million in expenses).”
And now, here’s what I’m writing. My proposed “Divine Nine Hotel & Convention Center” can easily become a reality. It’s basic math, elementary actually. There’s a total of approximately 1.5 million members of these organizations, ranging from about 30,000 for the smallest to about 300,000 for the largest. Their income is received from annual dues (excluding membership application fees and reclamation costs) of roughly $600 per member. And as one of those organizations recently noted on its website, only about one in five members actually pays annual dues beyond initiation fees. Assuming that applies to the other eight organizations generally, that means 20 percent of 1.5 million members pay $600 each year. Accordingly, 300,000 members, at a rate of $600 per year, pay a total of $180 million each year to the Divine Nine. What does that mean? I’ll tell you what it means. It means that in less than two-and-a-half years, we can stop begging the white man to host our fancy black and white galas.
As I mentioned, the Baltimore Convention Center and Exhibition Hall together with the Baltimore Hilton Hotel cost only $400 million. Or instead of that hotel, we could replicate the 408 room, 43,000 square foot Crowne Plaza Hotel used by the Philly Kappas last year. That costs a mere $25 million, which means the aforementioned $400 million price tag would be reduced to $225 million. We could easily build a $225-$400 million “Divine Nine Convention Center & Hotel” in less than two-and-a-half years.
Not only would we use it for our own separate glamorous and professional events but, more important, we could rent it out to the public and create “do for self” wealth for our community by creating jobs for our community.
In the meantime, while we’re building our own Black fraternal and sororal hotel and convention center, let’s patronize the already existing Black-owned classy hotels and/or convention centers like the Buckhead in Atlanta, the Doral Resort in Miami, the Springhill in Chicago, the Golden Green in Charlotte, the Roberts Riverwalk Urban Resort in Detroit, the Ocean Terrace in St. Kitts, and several others in the U.S. and nearby. Bottom line: There are many- actually more than 500- Black-owned hotels and/or convention centers that Black fraternities and Black sororities (as well as Black folks in general) can patronize until we build our own Black fraternity/Black sorority-owned “Divine Nine Convention Center & Hotel.”
Before closing, I must add two important things. The first is that we, the members of these fraternities and sororities, are not Greek and are not Black Greeks. We are Black people, specifically African people. The Greeks stole the secret rites of passage system from the Egyptians/Kemites, plagiarized it, and put together today’s Greek letter secret society system.
The second is that although I was quite happy about the overwhelming buzz created amongst thousands of Black fraternity and sorority members on social media and elsewhere in regard to this “Divine Nine Convention Center & Hotel” idea when I raised it last year, I was- and still am- quite sad about the nay-saying amongst many of those members who kept telling me how it could never be done and how there was too much division and how there would be infighting concerning any proposed location for such a center and hotel. But I ain’t hearing that this time. Therefore, with all due respect, if you can’t follow me on this or lead me on this, then get outta my way. We’re gonna do this thing with or without you. I prefer the former but I’ll certainly accept the latter. Anyone and everyone who’s interested, please email me at MichaelCoard@msn.com so we can schedule teleconferences and public meetings.
Michael Coard, Esquire can be followed on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. His “Radio Courtroom” show can be heard on WURD900AM. His “TV Courtroom” show can be seen on PhillyCam/Verizon/Comcast.
