Tiffany Haddish plans to open a grocery store that will primarily focus on communities of color called Diaspora Groceries. She says the name honors people removed from their native land.
If you’re a Haddish fan, then you know she has never shied away from sharing her story about experiencing homelessness. Opening a grocery store is her way of giving back to the community while creating opportunities in South Central Los Angeles.
“There has to be more community, and what I noticed [is] that real communities have their own grocery stores,” Haddish stated back during an appearance on an episode of “Late Night with Seth Meyers.
“So what I would like to do is open up my own grocery store because I’ve seen Korean grocery stores, Japanese grocery stores, Spanish grocery stores, [and] Indian grocery stores.”
A Grocery Store Representing Brown People
Haddish explains that Diaspora Groceries would highlight and sell items from various regions “where they’re all kinds of brown people. Things that are indigenous to our land.”
It’s safe to say that following Haddish’s journey back home to Eritrea, representation is vital for the star’s philanthropic work.
In 2021, she was welcomed with warm arms by her grandfather’s village in Eritrea. Haddish was born and raised in Los Angeles, but her father always instilled the importance of being proud of her heritage.
“My father is from Eritrea, and he passed away last year; he said one day I would end up here,” Haddish told reporters on the Oscars red carpet in 2018. “He said that if I ever end up at the Oscars to honor my people, so I’m honoring my fellow Eritreans.”
Haddish officially received her Eritrean citizenship in 2019 and was presented with a plaque while on a trip to Eritrea in 2021 that reads: “Tiffany Tsehaye Haddish Residence Geza Keren, Eritrea.”
More Than A Grocery Store
In addition to seeking out Black-owned vendors to circulate revenue for Black-owned business owners, she revealed the store would also offer weekly cooking classes for customers.
“I know so many millennials right now that don’t know how to cook,” she says. “And people my age — what am I? Generation X? — that don’t know how to cook… But they’ve been doing TV dinners and fast food their whole life because that’s affordable, which is ridiculous because it’s more affordable to cook your meals.”
Related: Tiffany Haddish Gets Warm Welcome From Grandfather’s Village During Visit To Eritrea
