During the month of April, Voices for Virginia’s Children, an organization that advocates for equity and opportunity for the state’s youth, will be hosting a pair of events dedicated to dealing with racism. On April 15th at 12:00pm, their Racial Truth & Reconciliation Coalition will be hosting their monthly meeting. They have invited the newly formed Asian American and Pacific Islander Civic Engagement Collective, as well as the Commonwealth Institute, The Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, and the Virginia State Trauma-Informed Community Network to provide policy updates, information on what may be impacting communities near you, and to engage in next steps and priorities. Registration is free, and interested parties can click on the following link to participate.

The following day, they will begin their new webinar series, “Declaring Racism as a Public Health Crisis.” In February of this year, Virginia became the first southern state to declare racism as a public health crisis. The resolution was sponsored by one of the keynote speakers for this series, Delegate Laschrecse Aird (D-Petersburg). Joining her will be Cynthia Hudson, Chair Commission in Examining Racial Inequity in Virginia Law, Stephens City Councilwoman Tina Stephens, and Chloe Edwards, Policy Analysis for Voices for Virginia’s Children. Registration is free at the following link.