Data from the Federal Reserve suggests that the success of your business can depend in part on your race, and one Bronx senator says the government needs to help even the score among all small business owners.    

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand says the government has a responsibility to help underserved communities build generational wealth. She joined local business owners at a press conference in Harlem to call for over $400 million of federal funds to support entrepreneurs in underserved communities. 

Historians have long said that centuries of discrimination have put marginalized groups at a disadvantage. In 2020, the Federal Reserve said that Black business owners were twice as likely to be denied a loan than a white business owner.  

Gillibrand says the funds would go to supporting pre-existing government programs for small businesses through loans, grants, and technical assistance.  

Small businesses interested in learning more can contact the Senator’s office via email at grants@gillibrand.senate.gov.