Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County Produces Pennsylvania’s First County Profile of Racial Equity

As we recognize Black History Month, CAAP sends a special congratulations to the team at Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County, for their recent completion of Pennsylvania’s first county-wide Racial Equity Profile. This report is the first of its kind, and will help local leaders identify where the county stands on issues of racial equality and begin to identify strategies to increase racial equity.

“With this report, it now feels like we have something tangible that we didn’t have before,” said Vanessa Philbert, Executive Director of CAPLanc, who said the report was an 18-month collaboration between CAPLanc and leaders from other agencies across Lancaster County. After the highly publicized death of George Floyd, Black county leaders across Lancaster were spurred to examine racial inequities in their own community. This report is one of the first steps to not only begin action in Lancaster county, but motivate leaders across the Commonwealth.

The 97-page report, which is downloadable, includes a summary, and examines seven key indicators that paint a portrait of race, equality, and access. The indicators are Demographics, Economic Vitality, Youth Preparedness, Connectedness, Health, Justice and Economic Benefits of Equity.

By clicking on each indicator, readers will gain access to charts, graphs, maps, and other tools that measure how people of color are doing in Lancaster compared to their white counterparts. The indicator sections also provide short narratives to explain why such inequities may exist and offer solutions to how to close the gaps in certain areas.

The report also gives readers insights and action steps, from unveiling a vision of what Lancaster would look like if such inequities are addressed, to offering ways that community leaders can get involved to make change for the better.

“Our goal is that this report pushes us to take action,” Philbert added, it’s not the kind of report that will sit on a shelf collecting dust, “You can’t fix a problem unless you identify it.”