This is the second of two op-eds from The Shared Prosperity Partnership. We asked leaders in each of these eight cities to describe briefly the considerations, strategies, and tactics required to advance more racially inclusive recoveries in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In today’s part two of this op-ed we hear from experts in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Chicago, Cleveland, and Milwaukee.

Minneapolis-St. Paul: Let this Be Our Moment. This Economy Calls for Reflective, Authentic Leadership.
By Tawanna Black

We don’t need a history lesson to know that Black, Indigenous and other workers of color suffer devastating immediate and lasting effects from major shocks and disasters of all kinds. Yet, time and again, recovery plans and solutions are crafted without accounting for the pre-existing depths of income and wealth inequality. We are witnessing this yet again, as cities across the nation respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and pursue inclusive recovery. This is a clarion call for new leadership and new action.

In the 10-year period of recovery since the Great Recession, Minneapolis-St. Paul has only narrowed the racial wage gap between white workers and workers of color by $521 (Source: Brookings Metro Monitor). In that same time, GDP for the region increased more than $77 million (Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis). This contrast in economic failure and success illustrates the historic dissonance in regional approaches to closing racial wealth gaps. For too long, people with the power to do better in every sector have focused our gaze on necessary, yet insufficient solutions to address the impacts of racism, but not on racism itself.

The ravages of COVID-19 have illuminated the opportunity and necessity for new leadership and action. Prior to the pandemic, McKinsey reported that the U.S. Economy could grow by $1 to $1.5 trillion by 2028 if actions were taken to close racial wealth gaps (Source: McKinsey, The Economic Impact of Closing the Racial Wealth Gap). At the Center for Economic Inclusion, we are challenging private and public sector employers and policymakers to have the courage and the conviction to put meaningful action behind lofty public statements, rather than slip comfortably back into privileged recovery initiatives that earned Saint Paul and Minneapolis rankings of 272 and 273 out of 274 cities for inclusive recovery following the 2008 economic crisis (Source: the Urban Institute Inclusive Recovery in U.S. Cities). We are in relentless pursuit of a racially inclusive economy. Join us to build it.

Read the full article about pandemic recovery by Tawanna Black, Dr. Helene Gayle, Bethia Burke, Ellen Gilligan, and Greg Wesley at Next City.