A Message from Loretta J. Mester, President and CEO

The views expressed here are my own and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve System or my colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee.

The brutal killing in Minneapolis of George Floyd, a black man, father, brother, and uncle, and the deaths of many other people of color before him make it clear that many people in this country continue to suffer the consequences of racial injustice. Racial injustice is not acceptable nor can it be tolerated. None of us should allow this time to pass by without a renewed commitment to take action against systemic racism and to take action for racial and economic equality.

As president and CEO of the Cleveland Fed, I want to state clearly that our organization will work toward changing the status quo. We will actively challenge ourselves to live by our values, values that embrace diversity and inclusion as the road to excellence. We will continue to work to increase the diversity of our boards of directors, our leadership ranks, and our staff so that our organization better reflects the diversity of the Fourth District communities we serve. We will listen more and actively learn from what we hear. We will undertake more analysis and outreach to better understand and document the effects of systemic racism and economic inequality on people of color. We will engage in public discussions and difficult conversations about racism. We will work with our Community Advisory Council and other organizations in the region to help identify policies and solutions to combat inequality and to promote economic inclusion so that all people have the opportunity to fully participate in the economy.

The Federal Reserve System’s mission is to work on behalf of the public to promote the health of the U.S. economy and the stability of the financial system. Pursuant to that mission, I believe that the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland has a responsibility to do what we can to combat prejudice and promote economic inclusion so that the U.S. economy can live up to its full potential and the U.S. can truly be the land of opportunity for all.