In 2025, the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women reached out to Cornell University ILR School in Buffalo to conduct a study to determine the extent of a gender wage gap in Erie County and to make recommendations on how such wage inequities can be addressed and eradicated. Findings from the 2025 study revealed that despite progress in women’s labor force participation, deeply-rooted inequalities continue to limit women’s earning potential, career mobility, and power in the workplace. Focus groups of mixed-race women revealed different workplace experiences that varied, primarily, based on race, that warranted further investigation into the experiences of women of color, particularly Black women. Thus, in October 2025 through January 2026, the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women, partnering with the Economic Development & Upward Mobility Coalition, charged the Cornell research team to dig deeper into the historical data and experiences of Black women in workplaces throughout Erie County.