The Change We Make | Catrena Norris Carter

How do you feel African Americans have impacted the arts?

Wow! I've never been asked that question. Let me think, I believe that black people are
naturally the most gifted human beings on the planet. We sing. We dance. We create.
We are the rhythm this universe feeds off “LITERALLY”, you see there is no other group
born with a raw talent that is beyond measure. While many try to imitate and infiltrate
none can duplicate. Everyone wants to dress like us, sing like us, dance like us, BE
us… We dictate the “COOL’ around the world, WE control the trends of what’s hot and
hip. We are the rhythm nation!

What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?

I successfully worked in the hospitality industry for close to 20 years at the same hotel.
Then came 911 and everything changed- the bottom fell out of the industry and the top
executives were the first to go. I went from 15 years at the same property to three
different properties within a little over a year. Right around the same time I was going
through a divorce with three small sons. Everything just started to fall apart at the same
time.

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My last boss on my last day (who didn’t look like me) handed me an envelope with
severance pay, which I didn’t expect because I really hadn’t been there long enough.
He walked up, looked me dead in the eyes and said, I doubled the usual amount in
hopes that this will be your last “job”: YOU ARE THE BRAND CATRENA and people
will pay good money for what you bring to the table…
You see when God is ready to move you to another plateau and you're determined to
stay complacent he will make you very uncomfortable. Things that used to come easy
become a struggle, doors that usually open close and lock. You are no longer
comfortable in environments you may have been in for decades because he no longer
wants you there; it’s time for you to move on to the next assignment and sometimes he
must force us out of our comfort zones to get us there. I realized GOD’S plan in that
moment…I took his advice and never looked back!

Tell us about your company and services.

I have a non-profit, Salute Selma Incorporated was designed to take the lessons
learned thru the lenses of the Civil Rights Movement and apply these solutions to
everyday business practices. This includes getting out the vote (GOTV), community
outreach, governmental affairs, networking, and outreach events to help raise
awareness and increase fundraising and advocacy opportunities.
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I also have a for-profit company, Kason Enterprises LLC. that specializes in project
management, business development, and crisis communications. We lead strategy for
community and partner outreach, while assisting with the planning and execution of
client events.

Tell us how critical the 2024 election is for African Americans.

After Trump’s win, in December of 2016, he attended a mostly White victory rally in
Hershey, Pa., and taunted “They didn’t come out to vote for Hillary. They didn’t come
out. And that was a big — so thank you to the African American community.”
That bit of history sums up what the African American vote means in this country. It gets
us back to the question: In whose hands rests the answer to the outcome of next year’s
presidential election?
The voters, of course. But as with previous elections, Black voters in important
battleground states are a key voting block and essential. We are hearing echoes of the
2016 Clinton disaster. Flagging enthusiasm amid complaints that Democratic standard-
bearer Biden, who can’t help it that he’s not Obama, is a bland motivator who has yet to
meet all the Black community’s basic needs. Though our feelings are not without basis
the reality is we must sometimes vote for the lesser of the evils. Install a Trump White
House and say farewell to civil liberties, voting rights, consumer rights and reproductive
rights.” And that’s just for starters. He has publicly disclosed that if elected, he would
consider weaponizing the federal government against those who would oppose his
reign. He’s made it known that he wants to strip career federal employees of civil
service protections, abolish the Education Department and to see more teachers
trained to carry concealed weapons. I would argue that at this point in history it is more
important to know the opposing candidate’s agenda than our own- If we take a moment
to listen to what he’s proposing we could easily see how dangerous a Donald Trump is:
Not only to African Americans but to this nation for decades to come.

Why should African Americans vote?

In my opinion every election is critical if we think broadly. If the majority of African
Americans in this country voted in every election; if we voted in masses in every single
election over the last 30 years one could only imagine the progress, we could have
made by now- there’s a possibility that we could’ve changed the very foundation of this
country: Where would we be with Medicare and Medicaid? Would we have had the
crack epidemic in our neighborhoods? Could we have prevented the prison pipeline
that has led to the mass incarceration and the killing of our black men and boys. Would
there be this huge wealth gap if all schools were created equal and adequately funded
no matter where they located or who attended? I contend that weather it is 2024 or
1964 we have a responsibility to ourselves, our families, and our ancestors (who died
for us) to show up at the polls and participate in the political process to ensure that we
have someone at the table representing the needs of our people and ensuring that each
and every citizen of these United States have equal opportunities to achieve the
American dream. To sum it all up, I read somewhere that “Trump doesn't need more
black votes he just needs black voters to stay home.”

Why do you feel about Affirmative Action no longer available for our institutions?

The Trump appointed ultra conservative right wing Supreme Court is carrying out his
mission to “Make America White Again”. Without affirmative action, racial inequities will
worsen as more students of color get closed out of the pathways to power and
prosperity that higher education brings. Eliminating affirmative action programs will also
further aggravate the disconcerting trends toward economic inequality. Today in
America, the top 10% of jobs take home nearly half of the income, and the richest 10%
of households own more than 70% of the wealth and this Republican lead Senate,
along with the Supreme Court is doing everything they can to keep it that way: To
uphold white supremacy by any means necessary and we all know that education is a
key component to ending poverty and closing the wealth gap. In states that have
eliminated affirmative action, studies have consistently found immediate declines in
admission and enrollment for black, Latino and indigenous people: MISSION
ACCOMPLISHED.

Tell us about your role in the "Bloody Sunday" Bridge Crossing Jubilee.

I was born and raised in Selma Alabama. As a teenager, I met the founders of the
Bridge Crossing Jubilee and worked within the organization for over three decades from
a volunteer to the National Coordinator – eventually becoming the Executive Director of
the Selma to Montgomery 50th Anniversary Commemoration Foundation and Executive
Producer of Centric/BET’S Docu-concert and SELMA SHEROS documentary. This was
one of the largest civil rights events in recent history were then President Barack
Obama, first lady Michelle Obama accompanied by their two daughters and former
Presidents George W Bush and Bill Clinton along with first lady Laura Bush and then
US secretary Hillary Clinton marched hand in hand across the Edmund Pettus Bridge
surrounded by thousands of public officials, activists, organizers foot soldiers, celebrities
and citizens from around the world to commemorate Bloody Sunday and the 50th
Anniversary of the signing of the Voting rights Act of 1965.

Why is this relevant now?

The very bill we were celebrating 10 years ago during the
50th has been struck down by this new season of tea party right wing extremist who are
systematically dismantling, not only the voting rights act-- which they gutted right here in
Alabama but have since moved on to strike down Roe versus Wade and Affirmative
Action. These are some of the most important bills ever been passed in the history of
this country as it relates to protecting the fundamental rights of the most vulnerable:
Including a woman’s right to choose.
2016 Is when I started Salute Selma Inc. to continue this work on my own terms, and as
we approach 2025 and the upcoming 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, “The
Fight continues: The Fight for Liberty, the Fight for Justice.