Local Government Accountability

An investigative report by Spotlight on Maryland finds the Baltimore City Health Department paid roughly $50,000 in taxpayer funds between 2022 and 2024 to the Louisiana‑based People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond for "Undoing Racism" trainings that led to racially segregated staff meetings billed as a 'White caucus' and a 'people of color caucus.' Internal descriptions obtained by the outlets say the White caucus was a recurring group where White employees met separately to examine 'our own complicity and systemic racism' and build 'stamina' to challenge White supremacy without relying on people of color. Invoices and receipts reviewed by reporters show the department also spent more than $2,000 on food for a three‑day racial‑equity training in November 2024 and brought in the Institute monthly to sit in on and advise the White caucus sessions. A city Office of Equity & Civil Rights employee internally described the Institute as "OG radical organizers," underscoring the ideological framing of the program. The People’s Institute defended the arrangement in a statement, calling the meetings 'affinity spaces' similar to corporate employee‑resource groups and citing research that such groups can improve engagement and retention, even as the revelations are likely to fuel broader legal and political backlash against race‑segregated practices inside public agencies.