Shortly after company responses to the protests across the nation came rolling in, including those from the beauty community, Chuter created nonprofit organization, Pull Up for Change, and launched the Pull Up or Shut Up (#PullUpOrShutUp) campaign.
The campaign urges companies to go further than their initial statements, perceived by some as simply saving face for good PR, by transparently sharing the number of Black employees in their headquarter offices, and in company leadership roles.
“You cannot say Black lives matter publicly when you do not show us that Black lives matter within your own home and within your companies,” Chuter said in a debut video on Pull Up for Change’s Instagram page.
After Chuter demanded transparency from corporations who had made claims to support the Black Lives Matter movement, consumers echoed these demands, and within 72 hours, some of the largest brands in the beauty industry had “pulled up,” and other industries shortly followed.
EBONY spoke with Sharon Chuter to learn more about why this was the perfect time for corporations to pull up for change, and what it can mean for the economic future of Black people.
