Support local journalism: Help us make a difference in Sacramento’s diverse communities

The Sacramento Bee launched its Equity Lab in 2020 with an important mission: to elevate diverse stories and voices by highlighting the achievements, the cultures and the concerns of underserved communities.

We dedicated a team of journalists to delivering on that promise and focused on the important work of building trust and relationships in communities of color. For the last year, our Equity Lab journalists have given a voice to Sacramentans who too often have been overlooked and unrecognized. Our team has published hundreds of stories, providing essential information about equity issues in local neighborhoods, schools and communities.

Now, we need your help as we seek to deepen and expand our coverage.

That’s why we’ve launched our fall fundraising campaign. We hope you will consider supporting The Bee’s Equity Lab and our coverage of diverse communities.

Your tax-deductible contribution at sacbee.com/donate will move us closer to our goal of 200 donors in this campaign and will go directly to supporting our community-funded journalists. With your help, we can tell more stories of collective importance and ensure that all voices in our community are part of the conversation.

Every day, The Bee’s Equity Lab journalists report on issues that affect the lives of those who live in underserved communities, and they seek to hold people and institutions accountable for fair practices. They write stories, produce videos, hold virtual events, host listening sessions and deliver a weekly newsletter to your inbox.

Just in the last several days, Equity Lab reporter Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks delivered insightful reporting examining the decrease of racial residential segregation in Sacramento, and she wrote thoughtfully about the dramatic increase in the number of people in Sacramento County who identify as biracial or multiracial. Reporter Kim Bojórquez provided a nuanced look at why many California Latinos were initially hesitant to get a COVID-19 vaccine, and why many now are rolling up their sleeves.

Reporter Jeong Park reported that despite measures aimed at promoting equal wages, people of color still lost $61 billion last year as a result of the race pay gap, and women lost $46 billion as a result of the gender pay gap. Reporter Marcus Smith told readers about a 71-year-old Oak Park woman who is being sued by the city of Sacramento for not completing construction on a home addition — a project she can’t afford to finish. And engagement reporter Orizo Hajigurban moderated a virtual discussion about how Californians are navigating the COVID-19 pandemic from a mental health standpoint.

We have so many more stories to tell about Sacramento’s diverse communities.

But the business model for local news organizations continues to be under extreme stress. So, we are pursuing new strategies to expand our journalism, and we are seeking your partnership.

We’re deeply appreciative of everyone who has supported The Bee’s work through subscriptions and gifts like these. Thank you for supporting the Equity Lab’s reporting and the future of local journalism.

If you would like to contribute to our campaign by sending in a check, please make it payable to our nonprofit partner “Journalism Funding Partners,” and in the notes field on the check write “The Sacramento Bee.” If you include your email address, we’ll send you a tax donation letter confirming your gift.

Mail checks to: McClatchy, 1601 Alhambra Blvd., Suite 100, Sacramento, CA 95816.

You can donate online using the form below or go to sacbee.com/donate.