Why I created Ìpàdé

So often I get asked why I created Ìpàdé. The answer is simple. Because Black women deserve nothing less than the best. 

In 2013, I founded a leadership development initiative for Black progressive women in DC called “Black Women For…” because that specific container of support was missing from my own life. I put on a few events, workshops, happy hours, and similar things for about a year before moving on to dig deeper into my maternal health advocacy work.

Black Women For... never took off as I expected but it was an effort that I didn’t recognize, at the time, would bring me to Ìpàdé.

In 2018, I joined The Wing co-working space when it came to DC and I was obviously impressed with what they had, but it was very white. I was sitting with one of my friends who later left The Wing because of racial tension and we started imagining, “What if we had a space like this for Black women and women of color? Could you imagine if this space were full of women of color––just doing our thing?” 

So, I found myself circling back to questions I’d had in 2013 that remained unanswered: Where can justice-minded women and femmes of color find training, mentoring, and community to support them as they step into their power? What safe spaces exist for us to learn, strategize, and organize in a world that is hostile to us? Where can we build community among people working to create a free future for people of color? Where can we just be ourselves and exist? It’s certainly not at the local WeWork or Cove.

The answer is Ìpàdé. I founded Ìpàdé because I believe women and femmes of color need safe spaces to gather, connect, share, and grow into our best, fullest, highest selves. We also need knowledge, skills, resources, and support to fulfill our life's purpose and to create the change we seek for our communities.

Ìpàdé is taking co-working to the next level by bringing like-minded women and femmes of color together to build something bigger than ourselves. In community, we find the support, encouragement, and inspiration we need to create, innovate, resist, persist, and thrive. We are doing more than sharing workspace - we are fueling work that transforms communities, our society, and the world. 

For me, Ìpàdé is the next iteration of my work for Black women and people of color. And there’s definitely more to come.

Read more of my story in an interview with Founding Member Kelsea Johnson over at Stirred Stories.