We launched the Driving While Black (DWB) vehicle—a car designed to show the double standards Black drivers experience—at the same time that auto manufacturers were releasing their new vehicles at the 2023 Detroit Auto Show. Instead of releasing the DWB like a standard pro bono campaign, we marketed the DWB like it was a real car, directing and targeting outreach at auto industry trade publications, show attendees on the ground in Detroit, and the biggest manufacturers in the industry. The strategy allowed us to take attention from the show and redirect it to the social issue at hand.

In America people largely acknowledge that racism exists, but they can't always recognize it in their own lives and communities.That's why we built DWB. To help highlight those double standards Black people experience, during the most common interaction with police - traffic stops. From microaggressions to murder, routine traffic stops are anything but routine when you're Black.

In America driving while Black is dangerous. In fact, Black drivers are 20% more likely to be stopped and searched by police than White people are and are three times more likely to be killed by officers during encounters than White people are. This campaign introduced the first-ever vehicle in which the safety feature is the car itself. Many Americans believe that racism is bad but perceive it as less prevalent in today’s society because they aren’t faced with it day-to-day. These double standards deflect self-awareness and accountability from those who don’t experience it. With “Driving While Black,” we aimed to demonstrate that racism continues to be an everyday reality for Black Americans by visualizing the absurdity of these double standards. To do this, we designed a car to immerse individuals in the experiences of Black drivers.

The Driving While Black campaign introduced the first-ever vehicle where the safety feature is the car itself. We aimed to demonstrate that racism continues to be an everyday reality for Black Americans by visualizing the absurdity of the double standards they face. To do this, we designed a car to immerse individuals in the experiences of Black drivers. Many Americans believe that racism is bad, but perceive it as less prevalent in today’s society because they aren’t faced with it day-to-day, so we wanted them to be our target audience. The work made a positive change by sparking conversations, articulating a perpetual problem, and creating a space for people to learn/teach others about racial bias in the American Justice system.

You can’t see racial double standards until you come eye-to-eye with them. Our target audience for this project is people who are on the fence about whether or not racism still exists in America. The car highlights double standards Black people often experience during the most common interaction with police: traffic stops. It tackles an uncomfortable truth in a way that is nontriggering and creates space for open dialogue. We hope that by bringing this issue to light, we can spark conversation and change in the communities we all live in.

We designed a car that provides a different approach to the incessant problem of racism behind the wheel. Every feature serves a purpose in safeguarding Black lives. For example; the 10 & 2 steering wheel was designed to keep drivers hands visible at all times, the glove box was removed to eliminate any assumptions about what the driver is reaching for,transparents doors allow all movement inside the vehicle to be seen, and so on.

Our car was inspired by the infamous case of Philando Castille who was killed in his 1997 Oldsmobile. We choose a sleek and futuristic feel for the car and logo design to blend in with the cars of the modern car industry. We worked with car designers, graphic designers, mechanics, engineers, to help bring the car design to life.

This work sheds light on an incessant issue within the Black community and US law enforcement. “Driving While Black” highlights the prejudice Black people face in a way that has never been done before. The modification of the car features to combat racial profiling or targeting allows viewers of the vehicle to quickly see the absurdity of the problem. Online engagement increased by 70%. Not only has this project brought awareness to this issue, but also it has given individuals a new way to articulate the problem and share their own experiences.

Courageous Conversations Global Foundations’ mission is to have difficult conversations about race and bring racial equity to all. We wanted to create a campaign that would not only spark dialogue, but also serve as a tool to educate and facilitate change when it comes to systemic racism behind the wheel.