From the COVID-19 pandemic to the public outcry against police brutality, recent events highlight that the persistent racial inequities in our nation must end. In the wake of national protests against the long-standing crisis of racist policing in America, the Urban–Greater DC team has strengthened its resolve to identify persistent racial inequities in the Washington, DC, region and to find solutions created through data-informed action, community solidarity, and partnership.
To strengthen relationships with the communities and partners we work with, we must serve as thoughtful collaborators, recognize past harms, and foster consistency and honesty. Five strategies can guide solidarity efforts and actualize the declaration that Black Lives Matter.
From COVID-19 to police brutality, communities of color are hardest hit. Innovative approaches to community engagement should ensure the proposed solutions accurately reflect the priorities, needs, and preferences of those most directly affected. Three key strategies can guide organizations working with affected communities.
Urban–Greater DC is the research partner for Thrive East of The River, a collaborative effort among four community-based nonprofits seeking to address the immediate economic insecurity and threat of longer-term instability posed by the COVID-19 crisis to historically marginalized families living in DC’s Ward 8.
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the digital divide is wider than we thought. Join the Urban Institute and the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth for the Equity Imperative, a week-long online forum exploring a pivotal challenge for cities: how to achieve equity in the digital age.
Affordable housing is increasingly out of reach for many people of color and low-income households in the DC area. The Washington Housing Initiative is one of a handful of innovative models designed to address worsening housing affordability and neighborhood displacement in rapidly growing urban regions across the US.
People working in COVID-19-affected industries in Greater Washington are more likely to be young, Latino, or Black. Economic forecasts indicate, like elsewhere, the region’s economic downturn will worsen before it starts to improve, and the recovery will be slow.
