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Black History Year

The History Behind Black Folks' Love Of Cadillacs

Black History Year

PushBlack

History, Society & Culture

4.32.1K Ratings

🗓️ 10 May 2024

⏱️ 3 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

One thing about Black folks – we love us a good Cadillac. Whether it’s your old-school uncle or your favorite play cousin, you can bet at least one member of your family adores this car. Here’s the history of our Cadillac love affair. _____________ 2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work. The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

One thing about black folks, we love us a good Cadillac. Whether it's your old school

0:11.9

uncle or your favorite plate cousin, you can bet at least one member of your family adores this ride.

0:19.0

Here's the history of our Cadillac love affair.

0:23.0

This is too-minute black history,

0:25.0

what you didn't learn in school. Black people in Cadillacs may seem like a match made in heaven, but the company once

0:38.8

gave us hell.

0:40.9

Cadillacs hit the market in 1992, but weren't recognized as a luxury brand until

0:46.0

1999. It began targeting prestige crowds meaning there was an unwritten rule that no dealership would sell black people a Cadillac.

0:57.0

Yet the cars were popular because they were excellent rides.

1:01.0

Any black person who wanted one had to buy one from a white person or pay a white person to

1:06.8

purchase one on their behalf.

1:09.7

So what changed? changed. Cadillac took a hit during the Great Depression. The brand suffered so much that it was based on green. Anyone who had the money realized prestige wasn't based on whiteness, it was based on green.

1:42.0

Anyone who had the money for a Cadillac was sold a Cadillac.

1:47.0

And by Cadillacs, we did.

1:50.0

Black celebrities, teachers, social workers, and others purchased so many, there's an

1:57.0

industry myth that black folks kept the brand from closing, and market research shows our dollars are still keeping the Cadillac

2:05.1

brand rolling as we prefer Cadillacs to other luxury cars. Cadillacs might be a

2:12.1

luxury but the real wealth in this story is what happens when we move

2:16.4

collectively. Our unity is powerful. Anything we decide to make happen will happen.

2:24.0

So why not turn our potent efforts towards our liberation?

2:28.0

In order to move towards the future, you've got to look through the past.

2:32.0

This has been two minute black history, a

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