Amplified Voices Series

My Brother's Keeper

This series will include a crucial conversation on the various issues and barriers that impact Black male youth in Baltimore City.

Nationally, young Black men complete high school at a significantly lower rate than their white peers and have much higher chronic absenteeism. As a city, Baltimore has several factors that affect the paths of our Black male youth. There are many who face environmental and social pressures that make it difficult for them to succeed and thrive. This program aims to have an honest, open, and real discussion around the challenges that young black men in Baltimore face, and discuss possible pathways to supporting and uplifting those individuals. Our panel was moderated by Baltimore's very own D. Watkins and included Aaron Maybin, Carl Michael “Stokey” Cannady, Wesley Hawkins, Dr. Lawrence Jackson, Elijah Miles, and Kondwani Fidel. We thank them for their expertise and insight.

Bearing Strange Fruit

Since 2020, the Nobody Asked Me (NAM) research team has conducted over 135 interviews with youth and their family members coming from various socio-economic and neighborhood backgrounds to reveal their voices, listen to their struggles and work toward potential solutions to actually see change and fulfill Maryland State’s constitutional promise of providing all youth a “thorough and efficient” education. This important roundtable community discussion hosted by the Pratt Library will also include city leaders, education experts, and community members as they discuss how they can help the city's most valuable resource navigate issues of racism, violence, transportation inequity, and the future.