In 1976, 22-year-old Oprah Winfrey drove up from Nashville to start a new job in Baltimore as co-anchor of WJZ’s 6 p.m. weekday newscast.
Winfrey spent the next seven and a half years in Baltimore, where she co-hosted her first local talk show.
“I came in naive, unskilled, not really knowing anything about the business — or about life. And Baltimore grew me up” Winfrey told The Baltimore Sun back in 2011.
On Nov. 30, Winfrey will give back to the city where she spent her early years as a journalist.
Winfrey will join Associated Black Charities (ABC) in conversation for the fourth and final installment of their speaker series, Equity First.
The virtual series features interviews with leaders from Baltimore and throughout the country.
The series features leaders who recognize that structural and institutional change is needed to drive sustainable change for people of color.
“It’s a way of connecting our mission, our focus on racial equity as it relates to changing the economic outcome for Black workers in Baltimore,” said Diane Bell-McKoy, president and CEO of ABC.
Bell-McKoy will interview Winfrey in the virtual session on Nov. 30.
“Just having Oprah makes all the difference in the world, in terms of having attention on the agenda,” said Bell-McKoy.
Bell-McKoy plans to ask Winfrey about her journey in Baltimore, philanthropy and what that means for her, and her long term relationships and friendships.
“It’s generally about her journey and sharing it with others,” said Bell-McKoy.
ABC’s mission is about investment in the African American community, Bell-McKoy emphasized.
“This is about changing the economic outcomes. It is not about broken people,” she said, “This is about investing, it is not about charity.”
“When we are able to move African-Americans up economically, we all benefit,” she added.
In Baltimore, where a majority of the city is Black, communities of color continue to face challenges that disproportionately impact minorities.
The Covid-19 pandemic shed light on these issues, such as disparities in access to healthcare and the digital divide.
“People looked up and said, ‘oh wow,’ but it really has always been here,” said Bell-McKoy.
While there is still progress to be made, the pandemic has turned the focus towards communities that need more investment, Bell-McKoy said.
“If we get anything out of Covid, it is beginning to recognize that we really do have to invest, and that people are not broken, but we have to invest and change those systems,” she said.
The virtual event will take place on Giving Tuesday from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Tickets are $75 each, and all proceeds go directly to ABC.
