10 business leaders fighting to make the Black experience a permanent part of corporate America

From left: Naj Austin, Jeff Cherry, DeShuna Spencer, and Obi Omile.Mark Jones; Matter.vc; Naj Austin; Skye Gould/Insider

• This Black History Month, there's a heightened call to dismantle systemic racism.
• Insider and the National Black Chamber of Commerce highlighted leaders advancing racial equity.
• These leaders shared their influence on Black and brown communities and their future goals.

This Black History Month seems different from those of recent years.

There's an overwhelming outcry from the American public, specifically from Black people, people of color, and their allies, to combat systemic racism and enact equity.

In May, video footage of the police killing of George Floyd, a Black man, went viral, sparking an uproar. Business leaders denounced the killing and promised to do their part to effect change. Suddenly there was more attention put on the antiracist work of Black people and people of color, work that's been going on for decades.

Against this backdrop, Insider teamed up with the National Black Chamber of Commerce - a nonprofit nonpartisan organization dedicated to the economic empowerment of Black people - to highlight 10 people on the front lines of advancing racial equity and inclusion in business.

These Black entrepreneurs, business and government leaders, and venture capitalists are working to lift up Black and brown communities through their work. Insider spoke with them about the work they're doing, how the Black Lives Matter movement affected them, and their hopes.