BRJA

Two persistent challenges for black citizens in Baltimore and across the country are financial stability and wealth creation. Contributing to this is the dual crisis of quantity and quality of work for Black working class citizens. There are a variety of factors that impact the realities of Black citizens that affect access to quality career opportunities and the potential to thrive in them once obtained. Centering the experiences, perspectives and interests of working class Black citizens provides the basis for the analysis. Understanding what led to this dual crisis allows us to explore what can be done that is transformative and sustainable to eliminate the problems.

The Baltimore Back Worker Center is a newly formed organization established to better understand and participate in action to address this dual crisis facing Black citizens of Baltimore. We invite the public to join the discussion, hear about and add to the information being considered and move to take transformative actions.

Panelists include Marisela Gomez, Lawrence Brown, Dorcas Gilmore, and Lenora Knowles, supported by others who are coordinating the establishment of the Baltimore Black Worker Center. All ages are welcome to attend.

Apple...Google...Yahoo...Facebook...Twitter..."diversity stats" in tech companies attest to the "...light, bright, damn near all-white" environment of the tech field.

What are we as a country losing by the racially limited (majority white) intellectual pool in technology? How is the lack of economic investment in Black innovation and leadership stifling U.S. technological advancement? Will this be yet another area where America's anti-Blackness trumps the potential for economic and innovation opportunities presented by Black Techs?

Join us on February 13th as Dayvon Love, Director of Research, Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, speaks about the history of technology in African societies; the challenges of Black innovation in a white-supremacist society; and the role of community-based social innovation in disrupting the white-supremacist frame in technology.

All ages are welcome to attend.

Debates are still raging regarding how Trump won. Excuses range from “The Democratic candidate had no message,” (even though she won the popular vote) to “economic insecurity,” (even though Trump voters made more than $50,000) to “Black and other people of color didn’t come to the polls,” (totally ignoring the tactic of Black- and other people of color-voter suppression clearly touted by the GOP). The only theories that have not made it to the mainstream media airwaves have been those discussing white fragility, and white Americans’ fear of a Black/other-people-of-color United States. What does it say when the majority of the votes for a candidate who campaigned on racism, misogyny and xenophobia are from a racialized segment of the population? With white voters ready to throw Black and other people of color under the bus to protect their own interests, should Black and other people of color still invest in a two party system? Should white people of good conscience? Join us as we discuss this and other issues.

This is a free event. Donations are welcome.

This will be an adult-centered discussion, but all ages are welcome to attend. Children’s books and coloring activities will be provided.

In Baltimore, as across the country, we are seeing videos on social media of teachers making racialized statements and hearing how Administrations are responding. But the question remains: what are our responses teaching our children? Does firing individual teachers solve the problem or shut down discussion of how racism is supported systemically? Are we teaching our children to look at the deeper issues or to go for a quick fix? Are we covering our "assets" or protecting our children? Are we teaching them to think: about the issues and systemic complexities -- or are we teaching them to scapegoat?

This is a free event. Donations are welcome.

This will be an adult-centered discussion, but all ages are welcome to attend. Children’s books and coloring activities will be provided.