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Black men in Tech Conference

blackice_ATL

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This weekend, I've been in ft. Lauderdale to attend a tech conference specifically for black men. The conference was well organized, great speakers in the industry, made a ton of connects. Some major companies were there recruiting. I met black men tech startup founders. We fellowshipped and share stories of our journeys breaking into tech.

They brought in a high school band start things off. And they were playing classic OutKast songs. They had a silent disco party. The last night they had a party and somehow they transitioned from knuck if you buck to Kirk Franklin and god's property songs. Overall, it was a great experience.

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DOSO

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    This weekend, I've been in ft. Lauderdale to attend a tech conference specifically for black men. The conference was well organized, great speakers in the industry, made a ton of connects. Some major companies were there recruiting. I met black men tech startup founders. We fellowshipped and share stories of our journeys breaking into tech.

    They brought in a high school band start things off. And they were playing classic OutKast songs. They had a silent disco party. The last night they had a party and somehow they transitioned from knuck if you buck to Kirk Franklin and god's property songs. Overall, it was a great experience.

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    That's awesome bruh. I wish that I could attend something like that.
     

    blackice_ATL

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    What did you learn there? What were your biggest takeaways? Did you see a lot of independence or was it pipeline to Corporate America?
    It was a healthy dose of both. I met up with a lot of black men with tech startups. It's crazy I ran into one of them whom I met in Tulsa at Black Wall Street over the summer. Just shows you how small the circle can be.
    But the conference leaned more into the corporate America side of things. The challenges we face, how we can navigate them, and most importantly.. the mindset.

    The mindset was the biggest takeaway for me. To be in this space, you do have to be built differently. There are many reasons why there are so few of us in that space and that's one of them. The path to success is a lonely road and it's not kind at all.

    I caught some great panels talking about the money side of things and learned a lot. I got more direction for my personal career path. Most of the speakers were accessible outside the panel to ask more questions and have conversations.

    For me personally, I know I'll be eventually working both, in corporate and in the startup space. That's because I desire independence and the ceiling is much higher. But I got a taste of startup work over the summer and it's a lot to work through.
     

    Heatice

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    I am happy to see these popping up more and more and spreading. We need to be able to know who is out there and who to support. The way for a black man in America to gain true freedom is through entrepreneurship.
    It's the best way towards our self sufficiency. There's no way these racist white supremacist individuals would be interested in seeing us grow and survive. It's all down to us to fight for our survival and this is one of ways to do it.
     

    Sapphire

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    It's the best way towards our self sufficiency. There's no way these racist white supremacist individuals would be interested in seeing us grow and survive. It's all down to us to fight for our survival and this is one of ways to do it.
    Exactly! If we help our own and support our own, we will flourish no matter what they do. That is the thing. We need to get enough of our people on the same page and wanting the same things. Get off government handouts. Establish healthy relationships. Have a productive family unit. Get our kids out of government-funded/ran school systems. We will all be better off.
     

    DaBeast

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    That's awesome dude! I had no idea about this conference, but I hope they do it yearly because it's something I'd be down to attend. I'm not a tech genius or anything, but I like tech, so could be fun.

    And here's to more conferences and festivals that are run and hosted black people. It's starting to happen, and that makes me happy. Now I just need to get out there and actual attend a con like this.
     

    blackice_ATL

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    That's awesome dude! I had no idea about this conference, but I hope they do it yearly because it's something I'd be down to attend. I'm not a tech genius or anything, but I like tech, so could be fun.

    And here's to more conferences and festivals that are run and hosted black people. It's starting to happen, and that makes me happy. Now I just need to get out there and actual attend a con like this.
    you don't have to be a tech genius to attend. lol. It's for people working in tech or have an interest in working in tech. If you're looking for more fun stuff, I suggest a con. There's a big black-owned con - Dream Convention in Arlington, TX. But cons in general are usually fun to attend.