St. Pete 2.0: The state of racial equity in St. Pete in 2021 [Take survey]

The St. Petersburg renaissance has been in full swing for more than a decade. We’ve excelled in many areas and struggled in others. In our series St. Pete 2.0, we’re partnering with the St. Pete Catalyst to explore what lies on the other side of our potential – what will it take to move to the “next level” as a city? Through this series, we’ll dig into specific topics with the hope that you, our thoughtful citizens, will share your insight, experience and wisdom.

Like many other American cities, St. Pete continues to grapple with a difficult history of racial injustice. As we embrace transformational developments over the next few years, we must continue to expand opportunities for everyone – particularly for people of color. We must be intentional, adaptable and expansive in planning for inclusion as we build a more equitable city. Good intentions must be reinforced with continued action.

Last February, in honor of Black History Month, we asked Catalyst readers to suggest ways our city could work to overcome systemic racism as part of our St. Pete 2.0 series. Over the past 12 months, the need for real solutions to address historic inequities and cultural biases have become even more urgent.  

Prompted by the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of police last year, American cities erupted with Black Lives Matter protests and calls for racial equity, criminal justice reform and an end to systemic racism.  

A year after we first asked these questions in St. Pete 2.0, during twelve months when considerable energy has gone into thinking about race, we want to find out what has changed in our community, and more importantly, what are the concrete steps that we can take to ensure that St. Pete continues to make progress in supporting diversity, equity and inclusion. 

Please take a few moments to share your thoughts on the state of racial equity in St. Pete by clicking here.

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