NBCBLK is a sponsor of MVMT50 at SXSW
What do a vocal diversity in tech advocate, an eleven-year-old entrepreneur, an HBCU professor and a tech novice all have in common?
They are just four of the ten men and women of color that will be recognized for their innovative ways and examples within the tech industry as part of the MVMT50 Experience at a South by Southwest (SXSW) Welcome Reception in Austin, Texas tonight.
Tens of thousands are converging upon the city for the kickoff of the Interactive portion of the multifaceted festival. President Obama will make the Keynote Speech this afternoon.
MVMT50 is a coalition committed to improving employment diversity, cultural representation and leadership development in the innovation, technology and digital sectors. And as their tagline says quite simply, they are "a think space for Black innovators."
Donell Creech, MVMT50 founder, said what made these ten stand out is the way in which they recognized a problem within the African American community and created a solution.
“We give the award based off of what was done in the previous year, for how they made a difference and an impact,” Creech told NBCBLK. “Rather than standing around and being upset, they saw a problem and decided to solve it. That is what make them innovators.”
The Top 10 Innovators of The Year were chosen from 29 individuals profiled throughout the month of February by MVMT50, all leaders breaking barriers and creating opportunities in the tech industry.
Autumn Caviness, interim director of the W.E.B. DuBois Honors program at Huston-Tillotson University, is one of the awardees this year. She said she does not consider herself an innovator.
“I am just someone who wants my students of color to have the best opportunities,” she told NBCBLK.
What is important to her, she said, is that her students at the predominantly black institution know that they have options.
“I want them to understand their minds can make a difference in the tech world,” she said. “I want students of color, in particular, to see themselves as more than just consumers of technology, but also creators of technology as well.”
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Leslie Miley, the former Twitter engineer who this past year became one of the loudest critics of the lack of diversity in leadership throughout the tech industry, is also being recognized. While he also does not consider himself an innovator, he recognizes that what he did when he left Twitter resonated with others.
“I think there are many more people who are really doing a lot and harder work than what I am doing,” he said. “I did not plan to do anything except tell my story [when I left Twitter]. I think [what I did] resonated [with a lot of people] because they felt the same way.”
“In the next 50 years – the civil rights movement will take place in the tech world.”
This year Caviness will also run the second annual
