Atlanta Council Members Boone and Bond to Honor Black Male Entrepreneurs at City Hall

Atlanta City Councilmembers Andrea L. Boone and Michael Julian Bond are set to honor a roster of Black male entrepreneurs, executives and community leaders at the Marvin S. Arrington, Sr. Council Chamber inside Atlanta City Hall, 55 Trinity Ave. SW, as part of the BEW-ATL Cornerstone Awards. The recognition comes during National Black Business Month and brings together business owners spanning real estate, hospitality, media, sports and entrepreneurship support across the city.

According to Atlanta Daily World, Boone and Bond will join Black Entrepreneurs Weekend Atlanta, or BEW-ATL, in honoring Black men excelling in business, leadership, entrepreneurship and community impact. The honorees list includes James M. “Jay” Bailey, president and CEO of the H.J. Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs; C.J. Stewart, co-founder and chief visionary officer of L.E.A.D. Center for Youth; restaurateur Christopher Berry; and Ryan Wilson, CEO and co-founder of The Gathering Spot, among others named by the outlet.

Also set to be recognized are Darrell Anderson, president and CEO of A-National Limousine Service, Inc.; Troy A. Phelps, founder and CEO of TAPhelps Brands; Cam Kirk, founder and CEO of Cam Kirk Studios; and Travis Jones, CEO and owner of Jones & Jones Hospitality. The list also includes Matthew Adebowale, CEO of Mr. Document The Process; Rick George, brand architect and founder; Marc Parham, director of the Entrepreneurship Center at the Urban League of Greater Atlanta; and luxury sales broker Khiry Peterson, per the same report.

A Wider Field of Honorees

Additional honorees named by Atlanta Daily World include Virgil Harper, a chef and owner; Alfred Simmons, Jr., associated with T&J Industries Development & Contracting, Inc.; Keith Dorsey of YoungGunsCEO; Dae'Shawn “Dae Day” Shelton, an entrepreneur and entertainment executive; and Dr. Archie L. Jones, Jr., an impact and search fund investor, advisor and senior lecturer in Harvard Business School's entrepreneurial management unit. Hank Stewart, an Emmy Award-winning, best-selling author and poet, rounds out the group of honorees cited in the report.

Bailey's inclusion carries particular civic weight. The Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs, where he serves as president and CEO, is a $50 million business generator located in Atlanta's West End, according to the U.S. Economic Development Administration. The center was built at the 54,000-square-foot former headquarters of legendary Atlanta builder Herman J. Russell. As of May 2026, RICE reported supporting more than 600 full-time entrepreneurs, sustaining 4,125 local jobs and generating over $557 million in economic impact across metro Atlanta, according to the Kiwanis Club of Atlanta, which also notes RICE is recognized as the world's largest entrepreneurial hub explicitly dedicated to Black businesses.

The Houston Roots of BEW-ATL

BEW-ATL marks the Atlanta expansion of Black Entrepreneurs Week, an event created by Houston fintech platform Equiliberty and founder Phillip Yates. The launch follows five years of programming in Houston, according to Houston Innovation Map. Equiliberty operates a fintech platform designed to connect underserved founders and families with capital resources, and BEW-ATL is billed as introducing Atlanta to that work of helping entrepreneurs and families move from financial health to wealth and ownership.

The Atlanta expansion focuses on connecting Houston and Atlanta's entrepreneurial ecosystems, strengthening relationships with local leaders and institutions, and creating new capital connections, per Atlanta Daily World's reporting. The Cornerstone Awards specifically aim to recognize individuals who helped build the foundation for Atlanta's next generation of entrepreneurs, leaders and innovators. Boone, for her part, has also previously recognized Black female entrepreneurs during Women's History Month, the outlet noted.

Atlanta's Standing Among Black-Owned Businesses

The ceremony lands against a backdrop that helps explain why Atlanta has become a magnet for this kind of recognition. Metro Atlanta ranks first in the nation for the fourth consecutive year in its share of Black-owned employer businesses, with 10.7 percent — 13,091 firms — owned by Black entrepreneurs, according to a February 2026 report by LendingTree that analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data. That figure significantly exceeds the national metro average of roughly 3.4 percent.

Yet the picture is more complicated beneath the headline number. U.S. Census Bureau data compiled by the Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative shows that roughly 97 percent of Black-owned businesses in metro Atlanta operate as non-employer firms with no paid staff, while only 3 percent have employees — a structural gap that generally leaves non-employer firms facing steep revenue disparities compared to employer-based businesses. Nationally, Black-owned employer firms grew to 200,885 in 2023, generating $249 billion in gross revenue, though Black founders still account for only 3.4 percent of total U.S. employer businesses, according to Census Bureau data published by The Black Executive Journal. Black-owned employer firms grew by 56.9 percent nationally between 2017 and 2022, the same data shows.

Two Hosts With Civil Rights Lineage

Boone, who represents District 10 in southwest Atlanta since 2017, is the daughter of the late civil rights leader Rev. Joseph E. Boone and previously served seven years as Commissioner of the Mayor's Office of Constituent Services. Bond, the Post 1 at-large councilmember representing the entire city of Atlanta in a seat serving over 450,000 residents, is the son of civil rights icon Julian Bond and has served on the Atlanta City Council since his initial election to District 3 in 1993.

Among the honorees, C.J. Stewart brings a résumé that extends beyond business into youth development. The former Chicago Cubs outfielder co-founded the Atlanta non-profit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, which reports a 100 percent high school graduation rate and a 93 percent college enrollment rate among graduates of its ambassador program. The organization uses sports-based youth development in baseball and tennis to empower at-risk Black youth in Atlanta.

A Month Rooted in a 1969 Struggle

The ceremony's timing during National Black Business Month traces back to a specific personal story. The observance was established in August 2004 by engineer Frederick E. Jordan Sr. and historian John William Templeton to advocate for policy solutions and address equity gaps in small business financing, according to the Chicago Defender. Jordan launched the initiative after experiencing personal struggles securing startup capital for his own engineering firm in 1969.

That history threads directly through Atlanta Daily World itself, the outlet that first reported on the BEW-ATL honorees. Founded in 1927 by Morehouse College graduate W.A. Scott, Atlanta Daily World is recognized as the first Black daily publication in America and is now owned by Real Times Media.