Tune in to WOL 1450 AM, 95.9 FM, and WOL Livestream on June 13 at 10:30 am EDT for Everything Co-op, hosted by Vernon Oakes. This week, Everything Co-op will broadcast live from the Network for Developing Conscious Communities’ (NDCC) National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda. Under the theme, “Economic Wealth: Power of Black Cooperative Enterprises,” the conference will be held June 13-15 at 214 4th Street E in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
The conference is a continuation of the legacy work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In a recent interview on Everything Co-op, NDCC President Ron Hantz said, “We take no credit for the title of the conference. Actually it was initiated by the Poor Peoples Development Foundation (PPDF) which came about in 1968 during Dr. King’s efforts to bring attention to the poverty of Black and poor folks in the Country. It was an organization started by Cornielus “Cornbread” Givens and Baryard Rustin to bring about education about cooperatives in communities that were needing economic opportunities, as well as bringing food to those communities as well.”
Ironically, the mission of the foundation was to create cooperatives. In fact, the PPDF was instrumental in moving the National Consumer Cooperative Bank Act in 1978, which led to the creation of the National Consumer Cooperative Bank, today known as the National Cooperative Bank (NCB). The act aimed to encourage the development of new and existing cooperatives. The Network for Developing Conscious Communities is honored to carry on its legacy, especially in addressing concerns related to poverty, affordability, and access to healthy food.
Please join Everything Co-op’s host, Vernon Oakes, as he joins the NDCC in their journey to unveil the benefits of co-ops to new communities in need.