Who I Am...Ken Chenault

“When someone says to me, ‘When I look at you, Ken, I don’t see color,’ I say, ‘Then you’ve got a problem because I’m very proud about who I am. So, don’t deny I’m African-American. Accept me for who I am, engage with me, but don’t deny my heritage. That’s important because we don’t have enough honest discussions about race in this country.’”

--Ken Chenault, Chairman & CEO (retired*), American Express

*On February 1, 2018, Ken Chenault retired as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of American Express Corporation after 37 years with the company. He recently joined the boards of the Facebook and Airbnb. He is also now the chairman of venture capital firm General Catalyst.