The murder of George Floyd in May 2020 shone a national spotlight on Minneapolis, putting long-standing racial inequities at the center of a much-needed nationwide conversation.

McKnight Foundation President Tonya Allen believes that tragedy still serves as a catalyst for moving past discomfort and confronting issues that can create meaningful change.

“The world is moving on, but we can’t let this moment pass,” said Allen. “This is an opportunity to redefine how we see ourselves and how we are perceived by others.”

Allen believes a large part of that needed change can be driven by community giving and engagement. Allen was the keynote speaker at the 2022 Minnesota Keystone Award Program Luncheon, hosted by the Minneapolis Regional Chamber in December to honor local businesses for their community giving and engagement efforts.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota received the Minneapolis Regional Chamber’s Keystone Program award in the Large Business category for its corporate giving and volunteering programs. The programs focused on driving positive change in communities throughout Minnesota, with a strategic focus on advancing racial and health equity.

“The Minnesota Keystone Program matters because we know how financial resources, when partnered with both essential human and social capital, is how we activate change and momentum to create enduring racial and health equity,” says Susan Schuster, principal community relations consultant at Blue Cross.

 

“Together we can transform the world we live in, where every person activates their ability to make a difference.”– Susan Schuster

Through their ongoing partnership with the YWCA Minneapolis, Blue Cross volunteers take action, fueled by the power of working together to make healthier communities for all. To date, Blue Cross has helped to fund and build a “dream playground” at YWCA Midtown in Minneapolis, brought volunteers together for large scale YWCA events that address basic community needs, and trained nearly 50 associates to serve as racial justice facilitators.

Carolyn Link, president of the Blue Cross Foundation and member of the YWCA Minneapolis board of directors, says Blue Cross was already concentrating on racial and health equity, but the challenges in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the COVID-19 pandemic over the last two years impacted how it does so.

“It sharpened our focus and our resolve to meet community needs. We also tapped into associates’ energy and provided the flexibility to volunteer and give to the organizations that resonate the most with them,” Link said.

Additionally, Link says the Blue Cross and YWCA partnership is relational rather than transactional.

“Employees want to be part of something bigger than themselves. Whether it’s being involved in their crisis response work, assisting in a playground build, or racial justice facilitation, it really is a true partnership."–Carolyn Link

Visit the YWCA Minneapolis to learn more about their work to advance racial equity across Minnesota.