Investing in our freedom.

As we kick off the new year, we at BLACK ENTERPRISE are more enthusiastically committed than ever to the Black Wealth Initiative we launched just a year ago. And no wonder--more than 45,000 of you have joined our wealth-building movement by ordering our free BE Wealth Building Kit and signing the Declaration of Financial Empowerment (DOFE); another 50,000 of you have attended seminars and conferences across the country to hear wealth-building presentations made by our editors and other representatives of Earl G. Graves Ltd.

One of the most exciting aspects of the wealth-building principles of DOFE is that they apply universally to African Americans, indeed, to Americans from every walk of life, from regular folk to famous celebrities, for example, the first DOFE principle--to save and invest at least 10% of our after-tax income--can be applied by those with incomes of $20,000 as well as those with incomes of $200,000. That's why I am excited that my friends singer-actress Vanessa L. Williams, super-attorney Johnnie Cochran, and Star Jones, also an attorney and a co-host of WABC-TV's The View, agreed to join the media and sports stars featured in "Portfolios of the Rich & Famous," our cover story for this issue.

They understand that fame, fortune, and professional success alone do not guarantee wealth--there are too many "riches-to-rags" morality tales of top athletes and entertainers filing for bankruptcy protection and facing poverty to continue giving credence to that myth. Williams, Jones, and Cochran are among those who understand that saving, investing, and managing the money you earn is critical to maintaining your financial fortunes long after the fame has faded.

Now, you and I may not have the star power of Vanessa, Johnnie, and, well, Star, but we have to be just as concerned with how much wealth we will have accumulated for ourselves and our children once we are past our peak earning years, however we make our livings. That's why we joined the National Policy Commission on Wealth Accumulation, created by the Washington, D.C.-based organization Save the Dream, charged with opening savings and investment options for all Americans.

The most important challenge facing African Americans in the 21st century is the net worth gap--the difference between the value of assets controlled by the typical African American family and the worth of assets controlled by the average white household. Wealth is the power to direct the political tide in our favor. Wealth is also the power to maintain our financial security, our integrity, and the health of our communities when the political tide turns against us. The promise of economic freedom is what pushed us to start our own businesses, pursue higher education, breach the barriers blocking us from lucrative professions, and thrive in the global economic mainstream. But we can only achieve that; freedom by encouraging every African American--and especially; young people--to commit to wealth building and fiscal responsibility.

Get everyone you know to join the Black Wealth Initiative. Our future--and our hopes for our children--depend on all of us, great and small, the celebrities and just plain folk, coming together to invest in our freedom.