Now, Mr. Lincoln?

(Edwin Milligan's voice) 'Wouldn’t had a chance for a loan without Conerly’s Economic Development Office.’"

The script also imposes a predetermined, curated tone upon the few African American voices that feature in the ad by limiting their verbal input to short phrases of gratitude and humility for the munificence of their white benefactors. Despite the fact that the black men who benefited directly from the NML campaign needed to possess the smarts and initiative to start their own entrepreneurial businesses, the TV script gives them no time or words in which to claim ownership or declare pride for their ideas.

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