The COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting racial inequities. Now is the time to fix them.

The COVID-19 pandemic is magnifying the existing barriers to opportunity that too many Marylanders face – especially Black, Brown, and low-income people. Whether we look at who is facing the greatest health risks in order to maintain essential services, the gaps in education resources for students and families, or who is eligible for federal relief programs, it is clear the challenges of the pandemic and the recession will not be shared equally.

In this webinar, the panelists will highlight policies that can help dismantle the structures that are holding people back in order to ensure the next economic recovery closes gaps, rather than making them worse.

Panelists:
Dr. Khalilah M. Harris is a non-resident senior fellow with MDCEP and managing director for K-12 Education Policy at Center for American Progress. Dr. Harris brings a unique perspective to her work, from an extensive career of working to expand access to opportunity through an equity lens in community organizing, education, education policy, youth advocacy, and building an inclusive workforce.

Dr. Andre Perry is a Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings, a scholar-in-residence at American University and a columnist for the Hechinger Report. A nationally known and respected commentator on race, structural inequality and education, Dr. Perry is the author of the forthcoming book Know Your Price: Valuing Black Lives and Property in America’s Black cities

Moderator:
Benjamin Orr is MDCEP’s Executive Director. Mr. Orr previously spent three years with the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, where he worked on policy issues affecting the greater Washington DC region.