The Ohio Black Expo runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, May 25, and from noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday, May 26.
Additional programming including the Level Up Youth Summit and The State of Black Ohio keynote presentations are held at various times and locations on Thursday, May 23 and Friday, May 24. For more information go to www.blackohioexpo.com.
From May 25-26, Genoa Park will be filled with the food, the music and the vibes; showcasing Black Excellence during the Ohio Black Expo.
The organizers of the Ohio Black Expo worked all year to make this a successful event with artists, small businesses and community leaders working as vendors and performers. With more than 40 live performances, 100 vendors and 20 food trucks – all Black-owned – there’s something to entertain anyone.
The expo is family-friendly with inflatables, crafts and games. More than 350 youth band musicians will march in the parade held at noon on Saturday, May 25.
“We live in times when people are really busy and don’t always take the time to just get out there and have fun as a family,” Ohio Black Expo President Sherri Hamilton says. “So we’re really excited about bringing that aspect – what we used to do when we didn’t have so much technology and everybody wasn’t glued to their phones or their TV or their video games or whatever else.”
The cuisine options cover a range of specialties and flavors that celebrate different cultures. The expo also shares culture through an Afrobeats zone and activities such as line dancing.
“We have amazing food vendors; African food and Jamaican food, soul food, the gamut,” Hamilton says. “We even have a Black-owned food truck, but they have hibachi Japanese food and I think one of the owners is both Black and Japanese. It’s really a great mix and melting pot of food and just coming out to enjoy that culture. But on our side, it’s really to help instill pride and appreciation and preserve the culture overall.”
Esperanza Spalding, Grammy Award-winning strings and vocal musician, will close out the expo Sunday night performing with students in Columbus Urban Strings. Spalding, a Berklee College of Music alumna who was one of the youngest instructors in the college’s history at only 20 years old, will be playing alongside two upcoming Berklee College of Music students.
The expo’s founder, Rhonda D. Robinson started the event to promote small, Black-owned businesses in a time without digital marketing. While the available technology and climate of entrepreneurship have changed, Hamilton says some businesses will still fall through the cracks.
“Because of the algorithms you can’t just put stuff out there and know that everyone’s going to see it, so we still find ourselves back in that place where businesses need that exposure,” Hamilton says. “96 percent of Black businesses have no employees, they’re run by solopreneurs that don’t have access to capital to scale their businesses and that’s why this is really critical.”
To the organizers’ delight, their marketing is working. Hamilton says she has received positive feedback from vendors who have participated in the previous years, saying the exposure gained from the event earned them new and loyal customers. New vendors are added to the lineup every year even as many businesses return year after year.
Originally called the Columbus Black Expo and held at the Mt. Vernon Plaza in 1980, the Ohio Black Expo has seen many changes since its inception. Shortly after, it was renamed and grew so quickly that it had to move to the Greater Columbus Convention Center in 1987.
To reach new people, it was moved to Dayton and then to Cincinnati before taking an almost 30-year hiatus. After returning for virtual festivals in 2020 and 2021, this is the third year the expo will be in-person since its return. The expo is likely to stay in Columbus due to its central positioning in the state. As of last year’s festival, attendees came from more than 33 different cities in Ohio and surrounding states.
The expo’s staff has also grown significantly, adding members and volunteers so that Robinson doesn’t have to plan alone. This also allowed for year-round programming on education and empowering Black students, health and technology within the Black community.
Historically Black College and University (HBCU) representatives will also be present to chat with students about enrollment opportunities and furthering their education.
“We just want to focus on helping our young people realize that they do have bright futures, that they can really control their futures by their actions, what they decide to do and not to do,” Hamilton says. “If you apply yourself in school, if you stay out of trouble, if you are decisive about what you want to do with your future, whether it’s going to college or to a skilled trades program, or even starting a business. You do as a young person have quite a bit of influence over how that works out … even if you’re living in poverty or you don’t have means right now, you do have ways that you can rise above that.”
Because another one of the expo’s focuses is health, the event offers free health screenings and presentations from medical professionals, as well as yoga, sound bath sessions and other holistic health practices.
“(Black Ohioans) have the worst health outcomes in the state of Ohio in a number of ways and overall we’re affected with kidney disease, heart disease and diabetes at a really high rate, and there are certain cancers that we suffer from at a higher rate,” Hamilton says. “Certainly, when it comes to infant and maternal mortality, we’re at a much higher rate than other communities as well, so it’s really important for us to do our part to help in the fight. … Those screenings, it seems like a little thing or just putting a blood pressure cuff on, but it really can save lives.”
To help Black folks evolve along with the job market, the expo also partners with technology training programs and promotes scholarships and grants for those interested in a career in technology.
Hamilton says the event is open to anyone of all ages and backgrounds. It is not a means for the division of people from different cultures, but a unification of all Ohioans who wish to support each other.
“With our [Black] population being a significant portion of the state, and even here in central Ohio, we’re about a third of the population. Unless we’re thriving, the whole metro area can’t thrive,” she says. “It really is a ripple effect. When we’re able to improve the quality of life for our [Black] community, everyone is going to have a better chance to thrive.”
Maisie Fitzmaurice is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mfitzmaurice@cityscenemediagroup.com.
