'Rules' For the BPRC Inc. & A Lil' History

HOW TO PLAY NICELY IN THE CHAT AKA 'THE RULES'

Hello from The Black PR Trust Moderators!

The Black PR Trust has singles, couples, and families as members. Some are here in Puerto Rico grinding as entrepreneurs or business owners. Others are chillin’ while retired. Some are kickin’ it as they have the leeway to work remotely and travel. There is a mix of those who practice different religions while some identify as spiritual, and some agnostic. Some have mothers, fathers, grandmommas, granddads, aunts, uncles who may have said to them "I'm not one of ya lil' friends." Here is why these differences are important: the Trust can kinda/sorta be like mother/father/person(s) who raised you in that members are asked to be respectful of others and mindful of what they share in the chat. Recommendations for where to live, where to eat, medical professionals, contractors are most welcome. Heck, it's encouraged to ask questions, share recommendations (e.g., babysitter, plumbers, Spanish tutors, best way to purchase a car) without being overbearing. Messages about porn, physically wanting to harm someone, daily scripture? Not so much. We ask those wanting to join the Trust be aware that politics, religion, and sexuality can be sensitive topics for some; so being mindful of how one speaks to and addresses others is paramount. (“Your blues ain’t like mine,” RIP Bebe Moore Campbell) So, the actual “rules” for the Trust –

NO crowdfunding solicitations (e.g., gofundme);
Members can solicit the Trust community to purchase products/services once-a-month with a message that is three (3) short sentences or less with an image or a few, and must share their post with one of the moderators ***before*** sharing in the Trust's WhatsApp group;
Members soliciting the Trust community to support their business or an event can do so with an image or images and accompanying text of no more than three (3) short sentences;
SHARE your Wins or Successes with photos or images, so long as the accompanying text is no more than three (3) short sentences;
NO spamming. Periodt.

Questions about ‘The Rules’ or what is approved that can be shared in the chat should be sent to hola @ BlackPRCollaborative.org. The Trust's moderators actively monitor this inbox and will respond as soon as they can with answers, examples, or context. It is important to know that decisions made by the moderators are final. Attempts to shade, shame, or lobby the moderators within the chat will be met with derisive laughter before out comes the boot.

The Trust moderators consider some photos, topics, and 1:1 discussions as instances that do not build community. Soliciting TBPRT members on a weekly basis to purchase your products or services does not build community. Failing to say "hello" when joining the group or before asking fiftyleven million questions of TBPRT members when you only joined 5-minutes ago does not build community. Sharing content or language of a violent nature that could be triggering of others in the Trust does not build community. (Who raised you??? Shout out to all the TK Kirkland fans out there.) Members of the Trust are discouraged for going all DeMarcus Cousins in the chat. Let’s be more like Tracy McGrady.

A KINDRED SPIRIT = AN INVITATION TO JOIN

Being a kindred spirit to the original vision for the Trust is the basis for receiving an invitation to join. Members of the Trust come from all over the world and bring with them different lived experiences. Nice! For those who are invited or recommended to join The Black PR Trust, the ‘ask’ is simple: a) introduce yourself right after you join & say "hello" then b) let the Trust know who invited you. It helps to build community when you say “Hi!” after walking into the chat. It’s a tad challenging to build community if you don't know who's in the community, so tell us where ya at! There are three moderators of the Trust and they hold true to building a community to enjoy and lean on when need be. Click here to email the Trust requesting an invitation to join or fill out the form here.

LET THE TRUST HAVE FUN

The moderators encourage all Trust members to have fun in the chat (as can be had virtually LOL). Having fun is necessary for self-care while it is important to a) know your audience and b) recognize that people in TBPRT bring with them different lived experiences. We know that body language influences a conversation, how tone with the written word can be easily misinterpreted, and that there are varying degrees of familiarity of those within the Trust community. The moderators’ objective is to create a space that Trust members enjoy. And in this space we’ll continue to grow as a group of Black & Brown people looking to live, work, and thrive in Puerto Rico.

HISTORY OF THE BLACK PR TRUST

The Black Puerto Rico Trust—aka The Black PR Trust aka TBPRT aka the Trust—was a group founded in March 2019 by Cheryl Mann. The idea came to CM after a great brunch that she and her bae Greg Callender (affectionately named "Hype Man" by Trust co-moderator Fatima Green-Stephenson) enjoyed with other Black & Brown folks who were here visiting the Island from the U.S. mainland. The convo touched on so many different topics. Folks were engaged. Lots of laughter. To paraphrase Dave Chappelle: it was ‘the whole shebang-a-bang’ of Black & Brown folks that she wanted to be around if they located here to the Island to live, as Cheryl & Hype Man had done. CM left the brunch excited...thinking of ways to maintain the energy for the purpose of trying to grow the small fam circle that the couple had begun building. CM’s vision: a group of Black & Brown people looking to thrive and build community in Puerto Rico.

As of March 2019 Cheryl & Hype Man had lived on-island for about 3 years. They had met some Black & Brown folks who moved to Puerto Rico and were looking to meet even more. Know this: when Cheryl & Hype Man moved to Puerto Rico in 2016 they knew no one. Spoke little Spanish. It was just the two of them. (cue up Bill Withers IYKYK) So whenever they came across other Black & Brown folks from the mainland who moved here to live, they were like: ANTE UP! LET’S DO THIS!!! (who doesn’t like a lil Bus-a-Bus??? M.O.P.? Remy Ma? Just Cheryl? Aiite, bet…) Again - the purpose was to build a community where people could be supportive of each other, hang out, share helpful tips for living here, be supportive of goals where possible, have lively discussions, etc., basically maintaining the energy from the brunch while sharing on-island lived experiences of being Black or Brown and moving from the U.S. mainland.

A lil’ more history: initially the Trust began as a Facebook group with Twitter and Instagram accounts. CM designed a logo and sought feedback from Trust members at that time. Welp the Trust lasted about a year on FB. (In the words of Peter Griffin: "Thank. Gawd.") It was basically CM posting stuff while trying to engage TBPRT members. In other words: no bueno. So, in early 2020 Cheryl opted to create a WhatsApp group for the Trust. Doing so enabled greater flexibility to moderate and grow the number of Trust members. Around mid-2020 CM told everyone in the FB group that it was "time to dip" because it was being shut down. Some of those folks followed. Others did not. CM’s vision remained the same: grow a community here on la isla del encanto.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading about how to join the Trust and our humble beginnings. We appreciate you.

¡Saludos y esperamos hablar pronto!

Black PR Collaborative Inc. Community