Trevor Fuller said Tuesday that the task force on poverty issues that begins its work in January must have open conversations about the role of race in making Charlotte-Mecklenburg one of the most difficult places in North Carolina and the nation for a family to make its way out of poverty.

Fuller, chairman of the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners, called for the creation of the task force early this year after a national study ranked the area 50th among 50 metro areas for the ease of upward mobility among families in poverty. He said in his remarks that it took far longer to create the task force than he first imagined, but that the partnerships developed during the creation phase brought together two powerful and effective co-leaders. The remainder of the members will be appointed this month, he said.

Below is a video of his remarks and the Q&A that followed.