Although unemployment in Baltimore decreased in recent years, going from 7.7% in 2015 to 4.7% in February of 2020, the unemployment rate has hovered above 11% since early spring. According to the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, as many as 1 in 3 adults were unemployed in multiple Baltimore City zip codes before the Covid-19 outbreak due to long-standing concerns including prior incarceration and lack of transportation.

As unemployment in Baltimore City outpaces state and national averages, exposure to adverse childhood experiences remains alarmingly high. A 2015 Census Bureau survey found 19% of city residents experienced sexual abuse as children compared to 11% across the state of Maryland. Twenty-nine percent of those surveyed experienced or witnessed domestic violence compared to 17% percent statewide. According Maryland’s Public Behavioral Health System, 42% of Baltimore adults experienced three or more adverse experiences as children, which has been found to impact economic mobility.