Dig into the latest episode of State of Our Workforce: Unpacked

In our latest episode of State of Our Workforce: Unpacked, we turn to Chicago for an inspiring, challenging conversation about what it means to truly center the voices of Black men in workforce equity efforts.

This episode highlights Breaking the Chains: Reclaiming Wealth, Power, and Dignity for Black Men, a powerful report that confronts the way workforce systems have failed Black men, particularly those who are fathers and those impacted by incarceration. Just as importantly, it elevates their resilience, ingenuity, and visions for their own futures.

National Fund Network Manager, Henry Danner, sat down with three of the leaders behind this report:

• Matthew Bruce, Executive Director of Chicagoland Workforce Funder Alliance
• Clinton Boyd Jr., Executive Director of Fathers, Families, and Healthy Communities
• Richard Wallace, Executive Director of Equity and Transformation

In the episode, our guests shared that this work started by listening. The data showed that Chicago’s Black male labor force participation was lower than in other cities, but numbers alone didn’t tell the full story. So, the team partnered with organizations that already had trust in the community to talk directly with Black men about their experiences and ideas of how to address the systems that are preventing them from building wealth.

What they heard was eye-opening and inspiring. Black men in Chicago, especially on the South and West Sides, face deeply rooted structural barriers like discriminatory hiring, mass incarceration, and predatory economic policies. The report challenges the deficit-based narratives we often hear and instead uplifts how Black men are already building their own solutions to overcome these barriers and provide for their families.

In spite of these barriers, they’re creating pathways to economic resilience through hustling, entrepreneurship, and community networks.

One key point that comes through in the conversation is that while Black men have shown incredible resilience, we shouldn’t expect resilience to solve everything. Systems and funders need to step up and invest in the kind of bold, transformative change that is required to shift from exclusion to empowerment.

The report also offers clear recommendations, from wealth-building strategies to better fatherhood programs that reflect the strengths and realities of Black families.

The Chicagoland Workforce Funder Alliance is transforming the report from just words on paper to use its findings as the foundation of their project. A key recommendation from the report was the importance of investing in career and education pathways into high-growth sectors. That is why, as part of the National Fund’s Advancing Equitable Career Pathways initiative, they are working to improve strategies to connect more Black men to healthcare career pathways at Malcolm X College.

Of course, this is just scratching the surface. In the full episode, you’ll hear the guests reflect on what gives them hope, how they’re holding systems accountable, and why now is the time for real change.

Tune in to the full episode to hear their insights, their vision, and their calls to action!