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"Ethics and equity and the principles of justice do not change with the calendar." 
- D. H. Lawrence                  

At Baltimore Corps, we work to fulfill our values every day. Over the next few months, we’re going to share a little bit about them with you.

Baltimore is a city of promise that has been held back by racial inequity for years. As Rodney Foxworth of Invested Impact shared in an interview during our Race & Equity series, “...racial and economic inequity and injustice are the social issues in Baltimore. I think language is important. We tend to underestimate the importance of questioning and unraveling power and privilege in our incessant quest for impact."

This year’s Fellowship cohort has placed a special emphasis on issues of race and equity. Fellows have heard from a range of speakers including Dr. Lawrence Brown of Morgan State University, A. Adar Ayira of Associated Black Charities, and activist Damien Haussling. These speakers have engaged and challenged our Fellows to consider the impact of racial equity on Baltimore throughout its history. As our community works to strengthen Baltimore, it's critically important we are in dialogue about the structural inequities that have disparately impacted communities of color across Baltimore City. Baltimore Corps Fellows and staff are better positioned to improve the lives of city residents by better understanding the complex role race plays in our work.

Sincerely,

Fagan Harris
In October, we kicked off Fellow Orientation with an anti-racism training facilitated by Baltimore Racial Justice Action to ensure that our Fellows work share an understanding of what institutional racism is and how it operates. Dr. Lawrence Brown presented his 'White L, Black butterfly' lecture to expose Fellows to the history of racial disparities in Baltimore. Led by Damien Haussling, Fellows participated in 'injustice walks', exploring parts of the city that have played major historical roles in the disparities we confront as a city today.
In December, A. Adar Ayira of Associated Black Charities and Baltimore Racial Justice Action led the first session of Baltimore Corps’ Race & Equity series. A. Adar Ayira spoke to the importance of equity, especially in Baltimore. “Baltimore has a strong history of racial disparities; to tackle these, we must acknowledge the root cause if we are ever to get to a 21st century for all citizens.” Learn more about A. Adar Ayira’s work here.
Just this week, Rodney Foxworth of Invested Impact led the second installment of our Race and Equity series. Fellow, Lauren McDade (Teach for America), shared her response to Rodney’s presentation, "the Race and Equity series has been very helpful in helping me think about my role as a white woman in breaking down barriers to equity in our city, both in my placement and my social life." Read more about our conversation with Rodney Foxworth here.
We are excited to welcome Karon McFarlane, Baltimore Corps’ Director of Programs. Karon will lead our Programs team, which develops Fellows, Associates, Visionary Cause Leaders and staff, playing a pivotal role in the organization.
Read more about Karon here.
This spring, we will invest time to continue to develop our staff in the areas of race and equity to ensure that we expressing our values in our work every day.

In March, stay tuned as we launch recruitment for our next cohort of Fellows.
Our mailing address is:
hello@baltimorecorps.org

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