John Hope Bryant

Operation HOPE 21: Telling The Story of Our Founding

21 years ago, this day, May 5th, 2013, the bold vision of and for Operation HOPE was born in South Central Los Angeles, immediately following the Rodney King Riots of April 29th, 1992.

"Rainbows, after storms.  You cannot have a rainbow without a storm first."

After the Rodney King verdict came down, so many things just went dark in the community I loved so much. The community I still love.  But not all things were negative, in the days and weeks and months that followed.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters and her local leadership group, led by Brenda Shockley as I recall, stood up their vision of and for Community Build. Today, Congresswoman Waters serves on the financial services committee for Congress, continuing to push her agenda for her people.

Then City Counciman Mark Ridkey-Thomas, who today is an esteemed and accomplished lead member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.  I fondly remember Supervisor Ridley-Thomas for so many reasons, but a couple stand out for me.  Mark (as I respectfully call him as a friend) served on our first board of directors for Operation HOPE. I remember our parting conversation. It was our first letterhead. We were committed to "eradicating poverty across America," and Mark (Ridley-Thomas) wanted to eradicate poverty and empower people IN THE 8TH DISTRICT!  We were both right, but Councilman Ridley-Thomas was more right than me.  He was 100% focused on empowering and serving the people in the district he was elected to serve.  This impresses me now, as much as it impressed me then.  I was sad to see Ridley-Thomas leave our board back then, by I so respected "why" he did it.  I also got the phrase "With HOPE," which has become my global signature sign-off statement on all correspondence, from Mr. Ridley-Thomas.  Finally, back then I would say that Ridley-Thomas was the only sitting elected official who really knew and understood community development, community empowerment, and the power of financial dignity in one's life.  

Atlanta Journal Constitution: ‘Silver Rights’ for the underserved

Moderated by Rick Badie

Too many of us would either flunk or barely pass a grading of our personal financial literacy. Many of Atlanta’s business leaders are aware of the problem and support various efforts to strengthen the region’s consumer literacy rates and put folks in control of their money and lives. Today, SunTrust CEO Jenner Wood writes about the commitment by leaders across Georgia to educate consumers. I highlight the HOPE Financial Dignity Center located at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church.

A mission for ‘Silver Rights’

By Rick Badie

On Nov. 14, hundreds of people gathered at the Operation HOPE Financial Dignity Center to celebrate the opening of the Atlanta complex. The nonprofit’s work to advance financial literacy and economic empowerment, though, had begun long before the ribbon-cutting ceremony. More than 1,200 people had already participated in workshops and services at various locales.

The center’s location — the anchor tenant of the Martin Luther King Sr. Community Resources Complex, next to Ebenezer Baptist Church — holds significance for James “Jay” Bailey, CEO of Operation HOPE in Atlanta.

“HOPE is more than humbled by the opportunity to continue the work that (Martin Luther King Jr.) started with the Poor People’s Campaign,” he said via e-mail. “I can think of no better place than on the hallowed ground of the King Center campus, in the shadow of Ebenezer Baptist Church and across the street from Dr. King’s final resting place, to carry out our mission of ‘Silver Rights.’”

Operation Hope was founded shortly after the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Its mission: To serve poor and underserved communities, provide better access to financial services, teach people how to manage money, make wise choices and tap into the free market system. The California-based nonprofit operates in South Africa, Haiti and dozens of U.S. cities that include Atlanta, according to its website, www.operationhope.org.

The HOPE Financial Dignity Center at Ebenezer offers two personal finance programs. A credit and money management workshop teaches participants how to plan and structure a budget. It also addresses credit — how to leverage it. The second personal finance program, “700 Credit Score Communities,” is an ongoing workshop that deals with additional elements of personal finance, but in group settings.

“When you transform a neighborhood to become a 700-credit score community, title lenders, payday lenders and rent-to-own stores become credit unions and community banks,” said John Hope Bryant, founder and HOPE CEO. “And liquor stores are transformed into convenient stores and grocery markets.”

Read the complete article here in the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

 

 

 

John Hope Bryant and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke Over the Years

 

Operation HOPE has enjoyed a strong working relationship with the Federal Reserve System, and most of the Federal Reserve Banks over the years.  I have personally met with and even conducted a financial literacy teaching session with then Federal Reserve Chairman Greenspan, and the former vice chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, the late, great Mr. Preston Martin even served on the national board of Operation HOPE until the day he passed away.  

Today, I am honored to say that I and we enjoy a solid and ongoing working relationship with Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart, in my home city of Atlanta, Georgia. President Lockhart has been instrumental over these past three years as we sought to stand-up the new HOPE Financial Dignity Center at Ebenezer, located on the hallowed ground of the King Center, which is now scheduled to open to the public in November, 2012.

But of all the leadership at the Federal Reserve over the years, dating back 20 years to the founding of Operation HOPE itself, I have enjoyed the most my relationship with U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who actually lives in what many refer to as the underserved section of Washington, D.C.  In short, the Chairman understands the poor and underserved.  His wife is even a teacher in the public school system.  They both get it, and they genuinely care.

For all these reasons and so many more, we are honored to have U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke confirmed as our lead keynote speaker for our HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summit scheduled for November 14th-15th, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia.  See you all there.

In closing, a special thank you is extended to my friend Sandra Braunstein at the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C., who substantially manages our very important working relationship with the Fed nationwide, and has for at least a decade.  

Onward and with HOPE

 

John Hope Bryant is a thought leader, founder, chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE and Bryant Group Companies, Inc. Magazine/CEO READ bestselling business author of LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass) the only African-American bestselling business author in America, and is chairman of the Subcommittee for the Under-Served and Community Empowerment for the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability, for President Barack Obama.  Mr. Bryant is the co-founder of the Gallup-HOPE Index, the only national research poll on youth financial dignity and youth economic energy in the U.S. He is also a co-founder of Global Dignity with HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland. Global Dignity is affiliated with the Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum.   Mr. Bryant serves on the board of directors of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, an NYSE Euronext publicly traded company, and a division of $54 billion Ares Capital.

 

John Hope Bryant Statement on the Passing of Rodney King

My deepest regrets are expressed on the passing of Rodney King.  My deepest regrets and condolences to his family and loved ones, during this difficult time.

The Rodney King riots and civil unrest unlocked a moment in history. Not only for one of America's most important cities, but for the nation as we whole.  It was a moment heard, seen and even felt all around the world.  What Rodney King chose to do with that moment, and that energy, could have changed everything in the days, weeks and even years that followed this tragic event. Worse still, when it appeared that justice would not be served following the first trial of the officers in question.

Fortunately for our world, Rodney King stepped forward and into the light, rather than backwards into the darkness that surrounded all of us at that time.  Luckily, for all of us, Rodney King publicly counseled calm for all in our city, and asked a question which would be etched in a nation's consciousness; "can we all just get along?"  That question opened the door to a future conversation, rather than past accusations.  That question helped to change everything.

Rainbows, after storms.  

In the years following the Rodney King Riots, a police department which was overwhelmingly mainstream in its composition, is today an active experiment in diversity.  Even its leadership has been transformed in the years since that day.  From former LAPD Chief Willie Williams and former Chief Bernard Parks, to former LAPD Commission President John Mack, who today still serves as vice president of the Commission, to Earl Paysinger, who today serves as assistant chief of police and is in charge of all police officers in the field, all represent a new sensitivity to the diverse and underserved communities they are sworn to protect and serve.

In a strange way, Rodney King also changed my life as well.  Because of what happened to him, the city changed, the Los Angeles Police Department changed, a community became actively engaged in its own redemption, and the now global organization I founded, Operation HOPE, was born.  

I am convinced that I would have never founded Operation HOPE, in its unique form, structure and approach, if it had not been for the unfortunate events of April 29th, 1992.

Rainbows after storms. You cannot have a rainbow, without a storm first.  May Rodney King's soul finally rest in peace.  He has done his individual part to advance our world. He will not be forgotten.

 

John Hope Bryant is a thought leader, founder, chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE and Bryant Group Companies, Inc. Magazine/CEO READ bestselling business author of LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass) the only African-American bestselling business author in America, and is chairman of the Subcommittee for the Under-Served and Community Empowerment for the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability, for President Barack Obama.  Mr. Bryant is the co-founder of the Gallup-HOPE Index, the only national research poll on youth financial dignity and youth economic energy in the U.S. He is also a co-founder of Global Dignity with HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland. Global Dignity is affiliated with the Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum.   Mr. Bryant serves on the board of directors of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, an NYSE Euronext publicly traded company, and a division of $54 billion Ares Capital.

 

CGI America 2012: John Hope Bryant on Creating New Pathways to Opportunity | Operation HOPE Blog

 

CGI America 2012: John Hope Bryant on Creating New Pathways to Opportunity | Operation HOPE Blog.

ON LEADERSHIP: Money and the Financial Integrity of Leaders engaged in Community

 

"The money....that's how they will come after you son...."  

This must have been the advice and counsel that Dr. King received from his father and others when he undertook the leadership of the civil rights campaign in the 1960's and 1950's.  "They will attack your integrity around money, they will attack your integrity around your work, and finally, if none of that works, they will attack your personal integrity."  These were likely the words of one known as Daddy King, or Martin Luther King, Sr., to his son Dr. King, as he embarked on a highly visible and highly controversial mission around the civil rights movement.  Whatever Daddy King said to his son, it worked.  

Dr. King and my personal hero Ambassador Andrew Young ran a tight ship, even as they were pursuing the civil rights movement.  Which doesn't mean they were not still attacked.  Dr. King was audited by the IRS and otherwise harassed by others, both within the government and within his own community, but none of it stuck, because once again, he ran a clean shop.  I cannot stress this enough. Dr. King did not just do good works, but he ran a tight organization that could withstand public scrutiny, and an audit.

Mo Ivory of CBS Radio in conversation with John Hope Bryant, founder of Operation HOPE

 

It was good to hang out with Mo Ivory of CBS Radio in Atlanta, Georgia recently, speaking on the work of Operation HOPE, a vision from civil rights to silver rights, and our thoughts on everything from the Rodney King Riots in Los Angeles, and what comes next for the poor and underserved of our nation.

Mo Ivory is the Director of Political-Community Outreach for CBS Radio Atlanta and host of “The Mo Ivory Show” on News/Talk 1380 WAOK.  Check out Mo Ivory's show and work here.

 

 

Operation HOPE at 20: A Look Back

Operation HOPE was born 20 years ago, May 5th, 1992.  And while no one cared much about "our story" back then, many, many more are increasingly interested today.  As our profile increases over the years, and around the world, so understandably will the curiosity. Accordingly, over the next few weeks and months, and during our 2012 anniversary year, I and others will seek to properly layout the true and accurate Operation HOPE story.  And thanks to the Internet and its incredible time-dated memory, this job will be made much easier (smile).  Here are but two of the time dated articles which chronicle the alliance at the time. 

The LA Riots: 20 Years Later | Operation HOPE Blog

 

CBS2 anchor Pat Harvey takes a look back at one of the most destructive urban uprisings in American history in a half hour special “Eye on Our Community: The L.A. Riots — 20 Years Later.” 

How far has Los Angeles come in healing the wounds inflicted during the week that it took officials to restore order 20 years ago?

Pat Harvey looks back at what caused the civil unrest and what relationships have changed within Los Angeles among ethnic groups and the LAPD.

The segment features comments from city leaders–among them Operation HOPE Founder John Hope Bryant–who share their forecast of the city’s future. Could a riot like 20 years ago ever happen again? We ask those intimately involved in the community now who were directly effected by the riots in 1992.

The LA Riots: 20 Years Later | Operation HOPE Blog.

L.A. Focus Newspaper Cover Story on John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE 20th Anniversary

That he has never been limited in his thinking when it comes to his own business potential has a great deal to do with why John Bryant is one of the most influential black men in America.

A fact not lost on three U.S. presidents—Bush, Clinton and Obama—all of whom he has served including his present post on the President's Advisory Council on Financial Capability.

A former goodwill ambassador to the U.S. for the United Nations, Bryant has been dubbed as one of the most authoritative and compelling advocates for poverty eradication in America today. And in the twenty years since he was motivated to establish Operation Hope after the L.A. riots in 1992, the organization has raised and invested $1.4 billion dollars in private capital in its communities serving over two million people. With an annual operating budget of $20 million, 18,000 HOPE Core volunteers and 5,000 partners, the L.A.-headquartered non-profit offers services in 273 U.S. cities and has expanded globally from South Africa to Morocco to Saudi Arabia.

It is the only minority organization with a national partner in homeland security for emergency economical disaster response and since its inception, has responded to hurricane Katrina and 22 other disasters.

“I want a movement. That’s what I’m focused on,” says John Bryant, referring to his vision of empowering underserved youth through financial literacy and entrepreneurial endeavors.

Ironically, it was a movement that started in transit as an inaugural bus tour with Bryant pulling together members of the banking community to tour South Central in the days following L.A.’s bloodiest and most costly riot to get them to see the viability of investing in South Central Los Angeles.

But what they invested just as much in was John Bryant’s vision.

“I don’t believe a person can have social justice until they can have economic justice. This is the new civil rights issue. After civil rights, we have to have silver rights. If Dr. King was alive this is exactly what he’d be doing right now,” insists Bryant.

“The main driver of freedom in the world today is not the vote but access to capital.”

Read the complete cover story at L.A. Focus Newspaper here.