MICHAEL MCAFEE, CEO OF POLICYLINK, GIVES BOLD AND INSPIRING MESSAGE AT LORA M. ROBINS SPEAKER SERIES

Speaking to a room of Richmond executives, government officials, and community leaders, PolicyLink CEO Michael McAfee told the audience to be intentional, smart, and bold, when it comes to addressing racial and economic equity in their professional lives.

McAfee pulled no punches as he spoke, and later, took audience questions for nearly two hours as part of the Lora M. Robins Speaker Series hosted by Leadership Metro Richmond. McAfee spoke openly about his personal journey which started with poverty and homelessness and moved him to the center of money and power within the philanthropic community.

As CEO of PolicyLink, McAfee focuses on just and fair inclusion for the underserved and underrepresented in America. He also works with large institutions and private companies to help them address racial and equity issues within their organizations and the populations they serve.

Though McAfee’s talk was titled “Change the Narrative,” he challenged the audience to first see the narrative of those they are serving. “Simply ignoring the realities of the communities we are trying to serve is just another form of oppression that we commit among ourselves,” he told the audience.

McAfee pointed to a systematic chart that started with population accountability within the institutions to fully understand who is being served. He spoke candidly about society as it is, not how it should be, “we operate in a world that the dominant culture is white and male,” he told the audience. “We often think, how are we going to convince this white man to go along with (and fund) our program.” He stated that the goal is not always to change the minds at the top but fund and support the work on the ground.

McAfee’s appearance concluded the 2019 Robins Speakers Series, which also featured best-selling author Angie Thomas.

Leadership Metro Richmond (LMR) is a community leadership development and engagement organization with a mission to connect and educate diverse groups of community leaders, inspiring them to serve the greater Richmond region.