In collaboration with USA TODAY, we’re inviting guests to examine how racism continues to shape our country in this free virtual event titled, “Power To The People: How Voting Laws Have Shaped The United States And Black America.” This conversation focuses on how equal access to voting is essential to the promise of democracy.

This event is part of USA TODAY’s “Seven Days of 1961” project, which spotlights seven pivotal protests in 1961 that fueled the civil rights movement and helped end legal segregation and extend voting rights to millions of Black Americans.

This project arrives more than a year after the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and other Black Americans. It comes amid a divisive national debate over systemic racism, equal access to the voting booth, how we teach American history and what role institutions such as the police, media and government serve in making our society safe and fair for all.

“Power to the People” is inspired by mass meetings held in Black communities to end segregation. These gatherings served to keep hope alive through song, prayer and testimony.

This is the second of three virtual events USA TODAY will host as part of its “Seven Days of 1961” project. You can watch the first event on-demand here.