EquityBlog

Photo credit: Minnesota Post

In The Nation yesterday, Editor and Publisher Katrina vanden Heuvel explores the Occupy Wall Street’s impact on how the nation — from ordinary citizens to policy leaders to the mainstream media — talks about America’s rapidly growing economic divide. PolicyLink Associate Director, and co-author of “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model,” is quoted in the piece explaining how the momentum spurred by the movement has galvanized advocates across the country:

Public attention to these issues shows no signs of waning—in fact, just the opposite is true, it’s on the rise and Mitt Romney can’t stop it—no matter what he has to say to protesters, or how much he wants this conversation to be confined to “quiet rooms.” (Read: back-room deals between powerbrokers to preserve and protect the status quo.) Sarah Treuhaft, associate director at PolicyLink, says grassroots equity advocates who have been working on these issues for years are now much more confident to speak up about inequality. That makes sense, since according to the Pew Research Center, conflict between the rich and poor is now “the greatest source of tension in American society,” with two-thirds of Americans describing that conflict as “strong.”

The full piece, which also ponders the impact OWS will have on the 2012 election, can be read here. 

Photo Courtesy of WhiteHouse.gov

The following is a statement by PolicyLink Founder and CEO Angela Glover Blackwell on President Obama’s 2012 State of the Union Address:

“If the playing field is level, I promise you — America will always win.”– President Obama

Last night’s State of the Union address laid out a solid vision for pushing America into a more equitable and inclusive future. With a targeted focus on job creation, infrastructure, workforce training, and fiscal reform, President Obama offered proposals for creating an economic system in which everyone can participate and prosper, including:

• Investing in infrastructure projects that would produce decent-paying jobs
• Funding community college programs to train America’s future skilled workforce
• Ensuring that the rich share the economic burden by paying at least 30 percent in taxes (the “Buffett Rule”)
• Preventing increases in student loan interest rates, and doubling the number of work-study jobs over the next five years
• Creating clean energy jobs programs

These proposals and others outlined in the President’s speech mark important steps toward closing the nation’s widening income divide. But absent a firm commitment from lawmakers to making equity an economic imperative, they will remain only ideas.

In a letter delivered yesterday to the President and members of Congress –- and signed by more than 130 organizations nationwide — PolicyLink presented a number of policy recommendations aimed at expanding opportunity for low-income people and communities of color hit first and worst by the recession and unfair economic practices. We stand with President Obama in pushing for equitable policy solutions that will help close America’s prosperity gap, and urge our legislators on Capitol Hill to do the same. Together, we can re-build an economy that works for all people.

Still buzzing about last night’s speech? Join us below in the comments to continue the conversation, and share your thoughts on President Obama’s vision for America.

Also, we encourage you to respond to local media coverage in your area and vocalize your support of a bold policy agenda for the 99%. 

This post is part of a series presenting equity leaders’ reactions to “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model” — a new paper that challenges the nation to invest in our collective future. This post is written by Peter Dreier, E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics and chair of the Urban & Environmental Policy Department at Occidental College. Click here to read other reflections

One hundred years ago, progressive thinkers and activists who called for women’s suffrage, laws protecting the environment, an end to lynching, the right of workers to form unions, a progressive income tax, a federal minimum wage, old-age insurance, the eight-hour workday, and government-subsidized health care were considered impractical idealists, utopian dreamers, or dangerous socialists. Now we take these ideas for granted. The radical ideas of one generation have become the common sense of the next.

The major idea of America’s Tomorrow – that a policy agenda centered on growth-with-equity is the best way forward – is hardly radical.  The entire report is full of practical, common sense remedies to the current economic crisis. It should be a no-brainer. But it isn’t, because there are political forces in our country that demonize the very idea of equality, who stigmatize government as inherently inefficient, who think that if families struggle to find jobs, earn a living wage, and pay the mortgage it is their own fault, and who believe that there is no such thing as the common good or the public interest. In recent years, these forces have gained ground in the political world and in the battle of ideas.

But recently these forces, including the Tea Party and its allies in business and politics, have been in retreat.  The Occupy Wall Street movement helped change the national conversation. At kitchen tables, in coffee shops, in offices and factories, and in newsrooms, Americans are now talking about economic inequality, corporate greed, and how America’s super-rich have damaged our economy and our democracy. The wide gulf between the richest one percent and the rest of Americans hasn’t changed during the past year, but Occupy Wall Street has made it a major topic of discussion across the nation.

The question now is whether a coalition of conscience can take advantage of the new mood in the country, which has created openings for unions, community organizations, faith-groups, and fair-minded elected officials to promote the “growth-with-equity” agenda. What’s need now is a broad movement that can translate the ideas in America’s Tomorrow into the world of politics and policy. Expanding much-needed public infrastructure, creating good, green jobs that pay a living wage, and advocating a progressive fair tax system should be the rallying cry of grassroots activists and the litmus test issues in the upcoming 2012 elections. The urgent ideas in America’s Tomorrow offer a blueprint for the next New Deal.  Can we seize the opportunity to make it happen?

Peter Dreier is E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics and chair of the Urban & Environmental Policy Department at Occidental College. He is coauthor of Regions That Work, Place Matters: Metropolitics for the 21^st Century, and The Next Los Angeles: The Struggle for a Livable City.  His next book, The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20^th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame, will be published by Nation Books in the spring of 2012.

As we get ready for 2012, and continue our work advancing economic and social equity, we have exciting news from Congress!

• Choice Neighborhoods will receive $120 million to create communities of opportunity with stable affordable housing, up from $100 million last year.
• Healthy Food Financing Initiative will receive $32 million–$22 million through the Department of Treasury, and $10 million through the Department of Health and Human Services–to expand access to healthy food in low-income communities. USDA will be able to use additional resources for related efforts.
• New Starts will receive nearly $2 billion to expand public transportation systems across the country, an increase of over $300 million from last year.
• Prevention and Public Health Fund will receive the full $1 billion authorized through the Affordable Care Act, including $280 million for Community Transformation Grants, which support community-level chronic disease prevention and the promotion of health and wellness. This is a $135 million increase from 2011.
• Promise Neighborhoods will receive $60 million to support communities of opportunity centered around strong schools, based on the principles of the Harlem Children’s Zone. That’s up from $30 million in 2011, and $10 million in 2010.
• The Sustainable Communities Initiative, which helps communities plan for their future economies and implement major infrastructure investments, will receive $2.6 million for operations–but will not receive funding for the grant program.
• The Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) will receive $500 million to create multi-use transportation hubs.

Bravo, Mr. President. Thank you for setting the record straight on our nation’s economy.

On Tuesday, President Obama made a major speech from Osawatomie, Kansas on what he called the “most defining issue of our time:”  restoring growth and prosperity for all Americans. Taking aim at the alarming growth of income inequality in this country, his speech hit on many themes lifted up in our framing paper, America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model. Here are my relections:

• A perfect diagnosis of the problem. Our economic model is broken: the middle class is shrinking and economic opportunity has dimmed. The Occupy movement gave voice and action to our national unease: an economy that benefits the few and exploits the many is unfair and unjust. Inequality is not only a moral issue, but also an economic one. Inequality is not only bad for those at the bottom; it is bad for everyone. The one percent depend on the 99 percent: who else would patronize their stores and buy their services? To put it simply: we all do better when we all do better.

• A fine start on solutions. We must advance policies that foster an economy that works for everyone. This means getting our financial house in order and setting up a tax structure that allows us to make investments in the infrastructure and education we need to secure the nation’s economic future in the global economy.

• Don’t forget America’s Tomorrow. We are quickly becoming a majority people-of-color nation and yet there remain wide disparities. Among children born poor in 1968, 45 percent of white children climbed to the middle class or beyond, but only 26 percent of black children experienced the same upward mobility. A successful economic growth strategy will pay particular to communities of color who’ve never had a fair shot at making it into the middle class and were hit first and worst by foreclosures and the economic crisis. Their future is our future: we must make choices that allow them to reach their economic potential.

We applaud the President for shining a light on these very important issues, and making clear what must be done to secure a bright and equitable future for everyone.

This post is part of a series presenting equity leaders’ reactions to “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model” — a new paper that challenges the nation to invest in our collective future. This post is written by Mitchell Silver, President of the American Planning Association. Click here to read other reflections.

PolicyLink continues to challenge us to think about better options as we grow as a nation. By the close of the 20^th century, multiculturalism, tolerance and diversity were comfortable ways of describing how Americans should embrace different races, ethnicities and cultures. But the demographic change that will unfold in the 21^st century will usher in an historic transformation to the American economic, cultural, social and political landscape.  By 2042, there will be no majority race in the U.S.  By 2023, more than half of all children in the U.S. will be people of color. That number will increase to 62 percent by 2050 and by mid-century, people of color will consist of 55 percent of the working age population. So it should come as no surprise that at some point in the 21^st century, the term “minority” will either disappear from our vocabulary or take on a new meaning.

Does America realize that our economic future rests on a population of children that are disenfranchised and are severely lagging in educational attainment? How will America compete in a global economy when it’s failing to invest in the next generation of innovators, scientists, mathematicians – most of whom will be children of color? How can America prosper when so many children of color live in poverty and lack opportunities for intellectual stimulation and a decent standard of living?

Embracing diversity is no longer just proper social and political etiquette. Embracing diversity is now linked to America’s future and economic prosperity.  PolicyLink offers insights on we can prosper as a nation by using equity as a “Superior Growth Model.” It’s time for America to understand that we must pursue social equity as a national priority. America must embrace equity now if we want to remain competitive in a global 21^st century economy.  Smart people understand their sense of urgency 10 years before it’s urgent. So America, how smart are you?  Need some help? Read PolicyLink’s America’s Tomorrow for clues.

This post is part of a series presenting equity leaders’ reactions to “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model” — a new paper that challenges the nation to invest in our collective future. This post is written by Lawrence J. Hanley, International President of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), the largest labor organization representing transit workers in the United States and Canada. Click here to read other reflections.

America’s Tomorrow highlights how rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure can be an effective strategy for advancing equity and growth.  The win-win argument for investing in public transportation is clear.  Public transportation drives not only passengers, but also a region’s economy. Public transportation systems create middle-skilled jobs, provide access to opportunities, increase energy efficiency, and improve environments in and for low-income communities of color. With a well-developed transit network, inaccessible jobs become accessible, businesses thrive, and neighborhoods are revitalized. According to American Public Transportation Association data, every $1 billion invested in public transportation creates and supports 36,000 American jobs.

To leverage this strategy, we must reverse the growing trend of privatization in public transit.  Privatization decreases quality of life, and by attempting to run a public system with a private-sector mentality, runs counter to an equity agenda. Public systems are more accountable to the public, and this is critical because public transit is not just for the few; it is for everyone.

PolicyLink also highlights the need for democratic participation.  Bus drivers and passengers must have a voice in public transportation.  Decisions that affect the livelihood of others cannot continue to be made by out-of-touch politicians.  The power needs to be placed in the public’s hands; a public who knows that investment in public transportation and infrastructure will both create jobs and promote equity.

 

This post is part of a series presenting equity leaders’ reactions to “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model” — a new paper that challenges the nation to invest in our collective future. This post is written by Larry Cohen, Executive Director, and Maggie Barnes, New Sector Resident, of the Prevention Institute. Click here to read other reflections.

We thank PolicyLink for catalyzing a thoughtful and comprehensive discourse on equity and for emphasizing that equity is a superior growth model. As America’s Tomorrow points out, major shifts in policy and politics are needed at every level.

Efforts to achieve equity and to transform communities into healthy places must emphasize safety. Violence affects young people of color and those living in low-income areas more than other groups. Historically vulnerable populations, including women, children, elderly, those with disabilities, and LGBTQ communities also experience more violence. Violence and other inequitable conditions are unnecessary and preventable, and have been produced by historic and systemic social injustices or as the indirect consequence of social policies, practices and norms. Links Between Violence and Health Equity reveals how violence begets inequity, and inequity violence. It is a vicious cycle, and the cycle must be interrupted.

Violence affects everyone. The much larger price of violence involves the devastating emotional costs experienced by relatives and friends of victims, and the fear and general reduction in quality of life that the threat of violence imposes on everyone in America, including those who are not victimized. The social and economic costs of violence do not remain isolated to the areas in which the violence occurs. First and foremost, preventing violence is about saving lives and reducing the physical and emotional trauma, which besets far too many communities. Preventing violence is also necessary to foster well-being and to strengthen communities, including advancing economic growth and competitiveness.  Spillover effects in neighboring communities include lower business development, less confidence in safety, and fewer educational and financial opportunities for community members. Safety has a critical impact on not just where we shop, where we walk, but whether we can walk in our neighborhood, whether there are jobs available, whether there are places to shop, if children are able to learn. Children who are scared at school prioritize safety over learning. Children are also less likely to be active if the local park isn’t safe and there are no safe places to play—people who experience or fear violence bear a greater risk of developing chronic disease.

PolicyLink points out the value of workforce development and the need to build sustainable jobs and to invest in our youth—these are also critical strategies for violence prevention. Young people need connection, identity, opportunity and hope, and addressing violence and the lack of safety is essential for creating healthy, thriving communities. As Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries in LA, best states it. “Nothing stops a bullet like a job.”

We know what to do to prevent violence. We can reduce rates of violence right now—cut them in half—without additional funding, simply by reprioritizing our investments and expenditures. It’s simply a question of political will. Communities have successfully reduced violence through comprehensive, coordinated efforts across sectors and community partners. UNITY, our work with cities across the nation, makes it clear that supporting and implementing equitable opportunities not only leads to a stronger economy, it leads to stronger communities.

Equity can’t be achieved without improving safety and preventing violence, and violence cannot be reduced without improvements to equity. We must all work together to create safe, equitable, healthy communities.

This post is part of a series presenting equity leaders’ reactions to “America’s Tomorrow: Equity is the Superior Growth Model” — a new paper that challenges the nation to invest in our collective future. This post is written by Tom Kingsley, Senior Fellow at the Urban Institute’s Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center. Click here to read other reflections.

PolicyLink’s framing paper is clear and it is compelling.  Equity is indeed the Superior Growth Model.  Priority now needs to shift to finding concrete ways to move the agenda forward.

I think one effective way to do that would be to support the preparation of annual Equitable Development Strategy reports for metropolitan regions.  These would present data for neighborhoods, municipalities and counties, region-wide.  The spotlight would be on indicators that would tell local stakeholders about progress (or the lack thereof) on interrelated equity and development goals.  But analysis would also be designed to identify neighborhoods and topics where new interventions might have particularly high payoff.  At the neighborhood level, this implies the use “early warning” indicators that would identify key problems and opportunities that are actionable.

Given dramatic improvements in data access there is no reason why reports like these could not be prepared in all of our major metropolitan areas from now on.  Their preparation and review should be highly visible public processes, structured to mobilize leadership from all segments of the community.  Every effort should be made to engage the local media as active participants as well (the kind of participation around similar reports that won a Pulitzer Prize for the Dallas Morning News a couple of years ago).

I am convinced that processes like these could create a new rhythm of accountability and give serious substance to the framing paper’s call for a “movement.”