R.I.P. Earl Graves Sr. - Founder of Black Enterprise Magazine Dies at 85

NEW YORK – MARCH 05: Earl G. Graves, Sr. attends the United Negro College Fund 65th Anniversary dinner at Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers on March 5, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)

Because of Earl Graves Sr.,we can. He championed black businesses as the founder of the first African American-owned magazine focusing on black entrepreneurs. Earl Graves Sr., died at 85 on Monday after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease, his son, Earl “Butch” Graves Jr, said in a post on Twitter.

Graves launched his magazine, Black Enterprise, in 1970. He later said his aim was to educate, inspire and uplift his readers.

“My goal was to show them how to thrive professionally, economically and as proactive, empowered citizens,” Graves wrote in his 1997 book “How To Succeed In Business Without Being White.”

According to an obituary published by Black Enterprise, Graves grew up in Brooklyn and gained an economics degree from Morgan State University. He held jobs in law enforcement and real estate before working on Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s staff.

After Kennedy’s assassination in 1968, he moved to found the magazine, which is now headed by his son.

Read the entire article here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/earl-graves-sr-founder-black-enterprise-magazine-dies-n1179021

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