This Black History Month, and every day of the year, we are reflecting on the ways in which public policy can be used as a reparative tool for Black people and Black communities in DC.
This new Council Period, DC policymakers can continue advancements in racial equity (as envisioned in the Racial Equity Achieves Results Amendment Act of 2020) and help build a just economic recovery with recreational cannabis policy.
On a local level, White households in D.C. have 81 times more wealth than African Americans residents, according to the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute.
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So many of DC’s Black residents have already been forced out due to rising costs and gentrification, and now the survival of Black-owned small businesses is at stake, threatening to undermine who and what DC is.
The District’s deep history of exploitation and discrimination against Black workers led to present-day racial disparities in many employment-related metrics including occupations, wages, employment levels, benefits, and opportunities to grow wealth.
Despite 10 years of a booming DC economy, unemployment among Black DC residents remains higher than before the recession, and Black incomes have failed to grow, according to a new report.
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