skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

NW Racial Equity Struggle in Focus on MLK Day

play audio
Play

Monday, January 17, 2022   

The quest for greater racial equity in the Northwest is in the spotlight today on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and it's part of the mission of one local organization.

Gordon McHenry Jr. - president and CEO of United Way of King County - said the first step to addressing inequality is understanding this struggle is going on everywhere.

"Make sure that folks are recognizing that in Seattle and King County - progressive Northwest - we have issues of racial inequity right here," said McHenry. "And it's not in other places; it's right here."

To shed more light on the issue, United Way of King County hosts an online event this Wednesday at 6 pm with Clint Smith, author of a recent a book on America's reckoning with its history of slavery.

McHenry said it's been important for United Way of King County to address racial equity, a process that began with a task force and assessment of the organization.

He said one pivotal shift they've made is to be guided by the communities they serve - especially Black, Indigenous and people of color.

"Show up more as a partner than as a grantor - 'You must apply for a grant' or, 'To work with us, you must go through these hoops,'" said McHenry. "We want to just sit with them and understand, how can we support them as a partner, and in a less structured way?"

McHenry said sadly, the issues that Martin Luther King was most concerned about - racism, poverty and violence - still are relevant in 2022.

"And those who are furthest from the resources," said McHenry, "historically marginalized, not sure they always feel like they belong, it's even more urgent and more pressing for whom that is their reality."

McHenry said he's afraid attention on racial equity might be waning, but he urges community members to keep up the pressure on issues like the role of law enforcement. He encouraged leaders to step up, too.

"Let's just be courageous and let's make some changes," said McHenry. "And what better time to do it than when you've had a racial justice reckoning, or when you have tolerated and hopefully survived a once-in-a-century pandemic?"



Disclosure: United Way of King County contributes to our fund for reporting on Community Issues and Volunteering, Education, Housing/Homelessness, Poverty Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021