I read with keen interest the MoCo 360 article on Feb. 27 spotlighting the role of the Black dollar and Black-owned businesses in Montgomery County, highlighting the work of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corp. (MCEDC). Gov. Wes Moore (D) campaigned on initiatives related to increased minority business, then revealed in his first budget funding that will support the pillars to create a more competitive and equitable economy.

Our public schools remain highly segregated along racial and socioeconomic lines, with more than one-third of U.S. students attending schools considered to be segregated, according to a recent analysis. How does school segregation like this continue 69 years after the landmark Supreme Court decision in Brown v. the Board of Education? The answer is one school board decision at a time. One such decision is currently before the Baltimore County School Board.

I’ve been commuting from Annapolis to Baltimore a couple of days a week for several months now. We’ve got traffic in Annapolis, and, sure, sometimes it’s maddening. There was that one time a sailboat mast got caught in a powerline on Forest Drive. But I have to ask you veteran Baltimore Beltway commuters a question. Is it always this bad? Is it as dangerous as it seems to a new commuter like me?

When I was diagnosed with stage three triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) that became metastatic within a year, I was given just two years to live. That was 11 years ago. Thanks to a second opinion, treatment with experimental drugs, and the support of my family and the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation, I am now a survivor and a thriver. I have since dedicated my life to ensuring Black women in Maryland and across the country who receive a similar diagnosis are given the best chance to do the same.

The latest Census Bureau data show Baltimore and Baltimore County shrinking modestly last year, while much of the rest of Maryland grew slightly. By itself, the figures are not especially surprising nor alarming, particularly given how the COVID-19 pandemic caused many urban areas to lose population as some people chose to flee the heightened transmission risk of city living and to work virtually. Already, many cities are seeing a reversal of this trend, including the District of Columbia, but not Baltimore.

Four Baltimore ministers representing Baltimoreans United In Leadership Development (BUILD) have made a persuasive case in calling for dramatic action to remove the blight of vacant properties in Baltimore’s neighborhoods. The presence of these vacant structures results from years of redlining Black neighborhoods. The vacants are a cancer for the people living near them: They are dangerous to both physical and mental health. People get killed in and around them. cAnother basis for finally ending this chronic condition is solid economics.

During Governor Moore’s first State of the State address he made a bold commitment to “end child poverty in the state of Maryland.” As a part of this pledge, Moore announced the Family Prosperity Act, a package deal that permanently increases the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and creates a Child Tax Credit (CTC) that would reach about 2% of Maryland children. While it is incredibly refreshing to have a leader in Annapolis take such a strong stance against child poverty, the Family Prosperity Act continues a pattern of legislation that leaves behind the poorest families.

Our nonprofit news organization is made possible by subscribers and donors who value storytelling that impacts and uplifts communities. Thank you for supporting our journalism. As a pulmonologist and a critical care physician at the the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, I spend my days caring for children and adults who are living with chronic diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. But often, I’m fighting a losing battle. When I prescribe an inhaler to a child, I know it’s only going to be undermined by the air pollution they’re forced to breathe when they leave my office.