Spotlight PA, Color & Culture hosting event to promote equity, democracy in Pennsylvania
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An October event in Harrisburg aims to promote equity and democracy in Pennsylvania.
“The Path to Equity: Empowering Pennsylvanians through Democracy Initiatives” will be co-hosted by Spotlight PA and Color & Culture.
Spotlight PA is an independent non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and WITF Public Media. Color & Culture is a multicultural full-service advertising agency.
The summit, according to the co-hosts, is “focused on the state’s rapidly growing communities of color, why they are not proportionately represented in positions of power, what obstacles exist in terms of their engagement, and the vital importance journalism plays in this equation.”
The event organizers highlighted the importance of the topic in a swing state ahead of the 2024 elections.
Harrisburg insiders, elected officials, statewide advocacy group representatives, journalists, community leaders and residents are expected to participate.
“This is a topic that’s vital to the future of our state, and one that does not get nearly enough attention in media coverage,” Spotlight PA President and CEO Christopher Baxter said. “And that’s why it’s such a perfect fit for Spotlight PA. Our mission is to elevate issues of statewide importance, spur meaningful conversation, and equip people to get involved and drive change. That’s exactly what we’ll be doing with this summit.”
The keynote speaker is Errin Haines, editor at large for The 19th, a nonprofit, independent newsroom focused on the intersection of gender, politics and policy. Haines is an MSNBC contributor and has taught classes on race, gender and the 2020 election at Georgetown University Institute of Politics, and at Princeton University.
The event also includes two panels.
The first, dubbed “Leadership in Change” features executive directors from each of the governor’s advisory commissions: Anette Nance, Commission on African American Affairs; Razin Karu, Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islander Affairs; Olga Negrón, Commission on Latino Affairs; Henry Sias, Commission on LGBTQ Affairs; Moriah Hathaway, Commission on Women; and Ruby Mundok, Commission on Next Generation Engagement.
The second panel, “Power to the People” includes: Salewa Ogunmefun, executive director of Pennsylvania Voice; Yamelisa Taveras, founder and director of The Unidos Foundation and CEO of Counseling Solutions of LV; Pennsylvania state Rep. Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz; Jonathan Cervas, Carnegie Mellon University postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Politics & Strategy; and Jennie Dallas, publisher at La Voz Latina Central.
“This event provides an immensely important opportunity to engage voters of all ages, backgrounds and viewpoints and lay an essential foundation for our civic duty and right to vote,” said George Fernandez, president and CEO of Color & Culture. “Color & Culture is honored to align with Spotlight PA on this important mission to reach a diverse audience of voters and, quite frankly, provide an opportunity for education and engagement that is sorely lacking in our communities, especially for our marginalized populations.”
The event is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 11 from 11:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. at Witaker Center in Harrisburg.
The event also includes lunch, a coffee bar and reception and a post-event happy hour.
Tickets are available online.