Mission
The Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity (ORE) works in collaboration with District leadership and agencies to apply a racial equity lens across government operations. The office also works to:
- Provide leadership, guidance, and technical assistance to District agencies on racial equity to improve the quality of life for Washingtonians.
- Promote strategic alignment and coordinate the District’s efforts toward achieving racial equity.
- Strengthen external partnerships with local racial and social justice organizations through meaningful community engagement.
Definition
Racial equity is the process of eliminating racial disparities and improving outcomes for the District by
prioritizing measurable change in the lives of residents who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color.
- As a process, it involves intentionally changing policies and practices and meaningfully involving
those most impacted by structural racial inequity in government decisions. - As an outcome, it means the elimination of racial disparities so that racial identity is no longer a
predictor of opportunities, outcomes, or the distribution of resources for residents of the
District, particularly Black, Indigenous, and people of color residents.
Plain language version:
Racial equity is about improving the lives of residents and communities harmed by racism to strengthen
the District as a whole.
Guiding Principles
Commit to learning and shifting our individual and collective understanding of the impact of racism and what anti-racism and racial equity are and mean.
- Acknowledge the historical and structural factors that drive racial inequities.
- Center the voices, expertise, and lived experiences of Black, Indigenous, and people of color
(BIPOC) in government decision-making processes that directly impact their lives. - Target solutions to those most harmed by individual, institutional, systemic, and structural racism.
- Analyze racial and ethnic inequities through an intersectional lens.
- Operationalize racial equity in ways that support the sustainability of agency efforts, people,
and impact. - Commit to long-term, sustained investments to achieve racial equity.