From September 8–10, over 125 racial equity practitioners in government from across the country gathered in Montgomery, Alabama for the 2025 GARE Leaders’ Summit. The member-led event called together seasoned racial equity practitioners to reflect, strategize, and make meaning in a place of significance, marking GARE’s second summit since the inaugural 2023 gathering in Georgia. During the multi-day convening, participants engaged in dynamic plenary sessions, dug into focused breakout tracks, connected with their regional peers, and spent a full day at the Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Sites. As they reflected on the past, confronted the challenges of our current moment, and recommitted to building a just, multiracial democracy, a set of themes emerged that gave the summit its energy and direction.
Grounded in Place and History
The decision to come together in Montgomery was intentional. Known both as the “Cradle of the Confederacy” and the birthplace of the modern Civil Rights movement, Montgomery bears the weight of a brutal history and the legacy of courage. As Mayor Steven L. Reed, the city’s first Black mayor, put it, “[Montgomery] shows the pain of America as well as the progress that America has made.”
This year also marks the 60th anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery March, a reminder that progress is not linear, and in the face of setbacks and uncertainty, it always requires resolve, sacrifice, and hope. The summit's theme, "Looking Back to Move Forward" was embodied by the Sankofa bird, a symbol of the Akan people (Ghana) that calls us to draw lessons and strength from those who came before as we work to create a better future.
Hope as a Strategy
In Looking Back to Move Forward: Understanding Resistance and the Role of Local Government, a plenary conversation with Amerika Blair, Director, Innovation Team, Office of Mayor Reed, City of Montgomery, JaTaune Bosby Gilchrist, Executive Director, ACLU Alabama, Tafeni English-Relf, Director, SPLC Alabama, and Glenn Harris, President, Race Forward, panelists emphasized the necessity of hope. Glenn Harris reminded us that solidarity is about togetherness: a shared vision, shared values, and the resolve to remain steadfast. “Hope as a strategy,” Blair noted, “is getting with our people and not leaving them behind. Hope is a discipline, where we put our time and investment.”
Panelists urged practitioners to invest in hyperlocal strategies and lean into co-governance with community – weaving a national story rooted in local realities by connecting with people and resources in their jurisdictions. At its core, this is long-haul relational work and the lesson is clear: building racial equity requires patience, persistence, and collective action guided by a shared belief that change - though hard-won - is possible.
Truthtelling as a Discipline
One of the convening’s most resonant themes was the urgent necessity of truthtelling in this moment. During our visit to the Legacy Sites, practitioners engaged intensely with truths of enslavement, racial terror, and mass incarceration - not as distant history lessons, but as legacies that are lived, remembered, and resisted. In his address to practitioners, Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), offered the powerful reflection that the greatest evil of slavery was not forced relocation and forced labor, but the dehumanizing narrative of racial difference created to justify it – a narrative that continues to shape our systems today.
“For generations, people have avoided being honest about our history,” he said. “We need an era of truthtelling, restoration, redemption, reconciliation, and repair.”
Racial equity work is difficult, requiring practitioners in government to step into places of tension, name what has too often been hidden, and to stand with communities that have borne the burden of violence and exclusion. In contemplating her experience, Dr. Arelia Johnson shared:
"Montgomery was an opportunity for many of us to come face-to-face with the atrocities of the antebellum period
in American history. For me, it was more than a historical encounter; it was a deeply personal confrontation.
Standing in that place surfaced a spiritual and emotional conflict that compelled me to look beyond today’s
chaos and draw upon the strength and wisdom carried by those who came before me."
Takeaways from Breakouts and Peer Exchanges
In her opening remarks, GARE Senior Director, Marsha Guthrie reflected on the power of practitioners coming together as a network and the critical nature of shared learning particularly in this moment, a sentiment echoed throughout the summit.
Practitioners had opportunities to meet by geographic region, connecting with new and familiar colleagues to strengthen regional networks and exchange insights on challenges and opportunities in similar social and political landscapes.
Well-attended breakout sessions like When Work Becomes the Target: Strategies for Advancing Racial Equity in an Era of Pushback, Can We Still Go Big? Making Local Government Truly Inclusive for Historically Targeted Communities, and Informing the Future: Advancing Bold Ideas and Collective Power in Our Current Political Climate underscored the urgency, dedication and the creativity practitioners are bringing to this moment. Across sessions, participants were eager to trade stories, resources, and learnings from the field, engaging deeply in small group discussions and breakout activities. “You have to be an active participant to understand GARE’s value,” noted GARE Steering Committee member, Kimberly Richardson.
Practitioners also shared openly about the realities they face – from shrinking resources to burnout to political pushback – yet with a recognition of their work’s impact. As one participant observed, “They only bother you when they see you are making a difference.”
The State of the Field and the GARE Racial Equity Evaluation Framework
In interactive plenary discussions, GARE also introduced practitioners to our latest resources. State of the Field and the Future of GARE, led by Marsha Guthrie and Danielle DeRuiter-Williams, CEO, Just Good Advisors, highlighted findings from the new GARE report on trends, bright spots, and barriers in racial equity work in government. The session invited practitioners to discuss and reflect on the findings, and consider how it might inform their next strategies. Practitioners named funding as a primary barrier, identifying the need to codify practices to preserve progress.
Both the State of the Field Report and summit attendees identified a need for new evaluative frameworks that take a more textured approach to assessing progress. GARE Data and Insights Director, Crystal Li and evaluation partner collaborator, Robert Roach, Director of Equal Measure co-presented an early look into the GARE Racial Equity Evaluation Framework that has been co-created by racial equity and data leads from 24 GARE member jurisdictions and additional supporting field partners UBUNTU Research and Evaluation and Clear Impact. Leaders’ Summit attendees left with an appreciation and understanding of the key elements of the forthcoming framework, and were also able to share feedback as it continues to develop.
Moving Forward
The past offers a blueprint, but the work is ours to do. We must remain visible, intentional, and steadfast. In marking the 60th anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery March, Mayor Reed invited us to consider: “What will people commemorate about us?” Our charge is to leave behind not only stories of struggle, but also of solidarity and shared humanity.
In the summit’s final plenary, Marsha Guthrie issued a heartening clarion call for practitioners to join the larger movement and engage more deeply within and across jurisdictions, inviting others into the fight for racial equity. “This Leaders’ Summit is about building the bench through incredible opposition, fear and frustration,” she continued, emphasizing the crucial nature of cultivating and base building within the network in preparation for doing work beyond the GARE membership. “You are making a powerful commitment to do a job that so few want to do and you do it with such love, care and resolve. We will continue to build together and we will win.”