In the efforts to change systems that oppress communities of color, you stand at the forefront. In your case, those systems are the financial ones long understood but seldom acted upon that help to drive crushing disparities of wealth. Unavailable to one-third of Americans are the traditional banking services that most of us take for granted. For them it is payday loans, check cashers, and pawn shops – operations designed to extract wealth rather than to build it. With the brain of a J.P. Morgan managing director and a heart broken by the death of Michael Brown you took the bold step of launching Mobility Capital Finance (MoCaFi), a vehicle to reimagine banking for these communities. MoCaFi harnesses technology to ensure that access to free or low-cost FDIC banking services need never again depend on your race, ethnicity or zip code. Home healthcare providers, bus drivers and municipal workers can now just photograph a check and draw from their account or debit card. They can pay rent in ways that boost their credit score, get financial advice and finance their business launches. And … as if that were not cool enough … you have partnered with members of the Wu Tang Clan to launch Triumph – a free start-up school for black and Latinx entrepreneurs. In all of this you are fulfilling the thwarted dream of your grandfather to launch a bank that would truly advance his community. That is quite a legacy.
In recognition of your distinguished achievement in economic justice, Williams College
is proud to honor you with its Bicentennial Medal.