February 2022 Newsletter: Happy Black History Month!

From the founding of Hulu and gifs, to pioneering the space race at Nasa, to the Color IBM PC Monitor and Gigahertz Chip—African Americans have shaped our world and changed us all for the better.

Recognizing that Black History is everyone’s history, rootid, is shining the light on African American achievements & influences on society. This edition of the newsletter spotlights advertising pioneer Moss H. Kendrix.

We have also compiled a reading list & podcast selections of various topics & themes. And finally, our staff spotlight features one of rootid’s founders, Andrew Goldsworthy. Enjoy!

Moss Kendrix was a pioneer in the public relations and marketing space during a time when African American representation in marketing was excluded.
Educated at Morehouse College, a historically black university (HBCU); Kendrix had visions of reshaping the public relations space. He was the editor of the school newspaper and co-founded the Phi Delta Delta journalism society, the first society for African American journalism students.

With a desire to create more equitable marketing that featured African Americans, he founded the Moss Kendrix Public Relations Firm, Kendrix fought hard throughout his work to showcase the power of black consumers.

upcoming events

COMMUNITY ROUNDTABLE
communicating your brand & key messaging through an equity lens

Join a group of nonprofit leaders & staff to explore Communicating Your Brand & Key Messages during a 2-hour Virtual Roundtable. Your brand is your identity and reputation—the why, how and what of your organization—and a solid brand is central to building long-term social goals, while strengthening trust, cohesion, and capacity. Join rootid for a discussion-style roundtable about ways to shape your brand identity and messaging through the lens of equity.

what are we listening to/ reading

Team rootid has compiled a list of podcasts & books to share with you. These selections feature African American authors, artists & podcasters.

books

When they Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir, by Patrisse Cullors & Asha Bandele
Feminism is for Everybody, by Bell Hooks
Black Leopard, Red Wolf, by Marlon James
I Just Can't Stop It: My Life in The Beat, by Ranking Roger and Daniel Rachel
Unbound: My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement, by Tarana Burke
What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker, by Damon Young

podcasts

Earlonne Woods, Antwan Williams & Nigel Poor, Ear Hustle
Roxane Gay & Tressie McMillan Cottom, Here to Slay
W. Kamau Bell & Hari Kondabolu, Politically Re-active
Greg Bunbury, Design For the People
Layla Saad, Good Ancestor Podcast
Jemele Hill is Unbothered

These are just a few selections, feel free to share with us the podcasts & books that you are enjoying! sia(AT)rootid.com

upcoming coaching cohort

Your brand is your identity & reputation—the why, how & what of your organization. Join rootid for a 5-session brand & communications coaching cohort focused on shaping your identity & messaging through the lens of equity.

Dates: March 10 - May 12, 2022

Times: Every other Thursday, 9am - 11am Pacific

Location: Zoom

Cost: $425 (individuals) / $850 (teams up to 4 people)

"The work we did around [creating values-based profiles] was my favorite.
In all my years in Comms, there’s not an exercise I haven't done or a tool I haven’t used—but this session was incredibly helpful.
I'm so happy that we have this tool & lens going forward.”

-2021 Cohort Alumni

What do you do at rootid?
I help our nonprofit partners use their I’ve been working with some of our clients for over 10 years! It’s always fun to see how new technologies can be applied to help organizations engage their communities.

Which of rootid's values resonates with you most?
Partnership Through Listening & Building Trust. To me this applied in how I work with our partners, and how we work together to center the voices of the communities they serve. It can be easy to rush to “solutions,” but it’s important to realize that listening to other experiences and opinions will create better outcomes for our partners.

What is your favorite thing about working at rootid?
As one of the co-founders, it’s amazing to see how rootid has evolved since we first started. It’s most exciting to see new ideas and voices on the team that continue to make our work better and better.

Please share something that you admire/appreciate about a fellow rootid team member.
Everyone on our team is creative. And, everyone applies that creativity differently. It makes coming up with new ideas, services and problem-solving really fun.

What’s your all-time favorite book?
The Old Man and the Sea. It’s one of the only books that I’ve read multiple times because it always seems to mean something new based on where I am in life. Also, I grew up spending lots of time on the water, so it reminds me of one of my core passions in life.

What’s your favorite holiday?
New Years. It has a way of reminding you of possibility.