Before the Report, the Charge: A Briefing for Elected Officials
Updated: 4 hours ago
A BRIEFING FOR ELECTED OFFICIALS
Nineteen years have passed since The State of Black Philadelphia was last published. On Tuesday, December 8, 2026, the Urban League of Greater Philadelphia releases The State of Black Greater Philadelphia: Advancing Community-Centered Solutions for Economic Mobility. It looks across Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, and it was built for the people who make decisions. That includes you.
We are sharing this briefing with you before the report goes public because the work ahead runs through your office. Read it now, and you will walk into the launch already knowing what is at stake.
What economic mobility means here
Economic mobility, defined by many Philadelphians, is the ability to move from surviving to choosing your life's path.
Darrin W. Anderson, Sr., PhD, MS, President and CEO, Urban League of Greater Philadelphia
The six drivers
Housing. Jobs. Education. Coming home from prison. Business and capital. Health. Each chapter of the report stands on its own. Read together, they describe one system holding Black families in place, and every one of them is shaped by policy.
Who shaped it
The report pairs regional data analysis with essays from subject matter experts and practitioners across each driver. The research was led by our research partner, Global Insight, under Founder and CEO Jillian J. Foster, with researchers Ola Kalu, PhD; Amna Rauf; and Shanila Parveen.
Every figure in the report is traceable to its source.
How we want you to use it
Dr. Anderson calls on policymakers, funders, employers, community leaders, health advocates and residents "to treat this report not as a publication, but as a commitment to action." The report organizes that action around three priorities:
Expand what works. Build on the programs and approaches with evidence behind them.
Connect people to opportunity. Close the gaps between residents and the jobs, capital, housing and care that already exist.
Measure progress that matters. Report results by race and by place, so the region can see whether things are actually changing.
The report closes with Calls to Act: specific asks for public officials, funders, employers and community partners within every driver. Read them with your district in mind, and carry them into the rooms where decisions are being made.
Your charge
The responsibility now rests with institutions that have the authority and resources to act. We call on the region's leaders and institutions to act with us.
You hold that authority. On December 18, the region will hear the findings together for the first time in a room built for policy and practice. We want you in it, ready to lead.
Be the first to read it
Want the report in your inbox the morning it goes public? Send us a note and we will email it to you on Tuesday, December 8.
Take your seat on December 18
24th Annual Whitney M. Young, Jr. Community Empowerment Luncheon
Official launch event for The State of Black Greater Philadelphia
Friday, December 18, 2026 | 11:30 AM
Loews Philadelphia Hotel, 1200 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107
Questions about attending? Call the Urban League of Greater Philadelphia at (215) 985-3220.
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