Just Me Magazine - February 2017 February 2017 | Page 11

People Are Getting " Tied Up " In The Movement

On Thanksgiving Day of 2015 , Fred Bethel and Tavares Bethel ( brothers ) were discussing the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the many shootings of Black men across America as well as the deplorable conditions surrounding Black communities . With approximately 46 million Black Americans in the U . S . that generate roughly 1.2 trillion dollars in the purchase of goods and services yearly within this country , it ' s alarming to know that a group of people can generate such wealth and , yet , only possess 13 cents of wealth to every dollar of wealth obtained by White Americans . The primary reason behind this economic imbalance is because of the 1.2 trillion dollars generated by Black Americans only 3 % of that money find its way back into Black communities . For this reason Fred and Tavares Bethel decided to stop talking about the problem and actually do something about it . Thus , one year later to the date , these brothers on Thanksgiving Day of 2016 launched a website called FreedomTies . com that is designed to be " by the people to build a people ".
FreedomTies . com is an innovative approach that utilizes the principles of online business and combine them with the techniques of pop culture T . V . programming such as American Idol , America ' s Got Talent and all other shows that give their audience the power of the vote to choose a winner . FreedomTies . com is designed to provide an array of high quality silk ties at a reasonable price in which half of the proceeds from the purchase of such ties will be granted to a community need , charity , unique family situation , etc . The decision of where these funds will be directed to will be determined by the majority vote of those who register on the Freedom Ties website . These donations will be awarded each month providing a scheduling of 12 charitable donations per year . In addition , individuals will be able to submit ideas of organizations , fund raisers and special causes that are in need within their community . These submissions will also be presented for vote to those registered on FreedomTies . com so as to narrow the selection down to the top four . These top four will then be presented for final voting . Thus , each month there will be two voting ' s , a preliminary and then a final .
Once a vote is made and an organization or special need situation has been determined , half of the proceeds that were collected for the month from the purchasing of Freedom Ties will be sent to such organization or special need situation in the form of a check . " It ' s a simple concept , when you think about it , that will allow our Black communities to better take control of how their dollars are being utilized ", says Fred Bethel . " I ' m pretty sure Dr . King ' s dream was not only for us as a people to gain civil freedoms but economic freedoms as well ".
With having been in business for less than 2 months , FreedomTies . com is already making a difference . Just recently Tavares Bethel was able to present a donation check of $ 700 on behalf of the purchases made from the site during the month of December to Maeva Jackson , founder of Black World Books which is a center where children can learn more about their black heritage and explore the reality of the black existence through books . " What if we sell 1,000 ties or 10,000 ties or even 1 million ties ; if a million ties were sold that would be 10 million dollars going back into our Black communities ", says Tavares Bethel . As the website gains traction , more and more people are realizing the importance of getting " tied up " in this movement so as to help make a change within their communities . Those who visit the site are not even required to make a purchase in order to be part of the voting process ; allowing everyone the opportunity to do their part in helping make a difference .
To learn more in how you can get " tied up " in the movement simply visit www . FreedomTies . com .