Gov. Wes Moore pledged Thursday morning to try and end the racial wealth gap in Maryland, arguing that it is in everyone’s best economic interest to do so.
Speaking to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Moore talked about the need to fight for financial justice.
“Racism is expensive. Bigotry is expensive,” Moore said. “And if we truly want to have an economic system that benefits everybody, we need to create an economic system that allows for the racial wealth gap to become history.”
The country has lost $16 trillion in gross domestic product over the past two decades because of this, Moore argued. A major American bank released a study last year linking that figure to the wealth gap.
In his remarks, Moore also issued a call to action to the CBC foundation, assembled Thursday for its annual legislative conference held in Washington, D.C. and live streamed by the sponsors. He urged Black lawmakers to think of their official positions as “ephemeral.”
“Our time in these seats is temporary,” Moore said. Referring to his remaining time in office, he said, “We’re not going to waste a minute. Because if we don’t, we will create the type of country that those who came before us hoped for, and the type of country that those who come after us deserve.”
