a framework for understanding the causes of racial inequities in 21 st century america

A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING THE CAUSES OF RACIAL INEQUITIES

IN 21ST CENTURY AMERICA

Presented by:The Aspen Institute

Roundtable on Community ChangeAnne Kubisch, Keith Lawrence, Raymond

CodringtonOctober 2, 2012

Detroit, MI

OUR AGENDA FOR TODAY:A language to talk about race

A framework for understanding how race and ethnicity operate in contemporary America (post-civil rights legislation)

New ideas and strategies for promoting racial equity

What is race and how do we understand it?

“A social construct”

No biological or scientific basis behind it

Best understood in social and political terms

New Language – we need to identify and talk about:

The ongoing advantages associated with being "white” – sometimes referred to as a white privilege

The ongoing disadvantages associated with being a person of “color”— which we refer to as structural racism

Source: Kaiser Family Foundation State Health Facts. http://www.statehealthfacts.org/profileind.jsp?cmprgn=1&cat=1&rgn=24&ind=14&sub=2

Black Hispanic Other White0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%

14%4% 5%

76%

41%33%

20%15%

Percent of Michigan Population Liv-ing Under the Poverty Line by Race

(2010)

Percentage of population Percentage living in poverty

Black/ African American

Hispanic or Latino

White Asian0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Racial Disparities in Michigan High School Graduation Rates (2009)

Dropout Will not graduate on timeOn track to graduate

Source: Race Matters for Michigan Children, 2011. http://www.michiganschildren.org/Equity

Common explanations of entrenched racial and/or ethnic disparity:

StructuralInstitutional Individual

How is structural racism different?

Racism at the individual or inter-group level:

• Personal prejudice• Racial slurs, the n-word• Inter-group tensionsSolution strategies include:

• Diversity and multi-culturalism

• Cultural competence

…these are important,

and these

personal attitudes and beliefs color

decision-making and

actions.

The bigger problem…

Racism at the institutional and

structural levels

Institutional RacismEduca-

tion

Employ-ment

Housing

Environ-ment

Criminal Justice

Health

Examples of Institutional Racism

Discriminatory practices, intentional or not

Redlining or “steering”Occupational segregationRacial profiling

One example: Racial profiling

0.00%4.00%8.00%

12.00%16.00%

Police Traffic Stops, Searches & Outcomes, by Race/Ethnicity

WhiteBlackHispanic

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. Contacts Between Police and the Public: Findings from the 2002 National Survey. April 2005.

Institutional Racism: A Systems Perspective

Educa-tion

Employ-ment

Housing

Environ-ment

Criminal Justice

Health

Structural Racism

Hist

ory

CultureValues

Educa-tion

Employ-ment

Housing

Environ-ment

Criminal

Justice

Health

What is Structural Racism?It describes the complex ways that

history, public policies, institutional practices

and cultural representations (e.g., stereotypes, norms)

interact to maintain racial hierarchy and inequitable racial group outcomes; thereby

allowing privileges associated with “whiteness”

and disadvantages associated with “color”

to endure and adapt.

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

WE ARE

HERE

Historically Accumulated White Privilege

• quality education• decent jobs• livable wages• home ownership• retirement benefits

Whites’ historical and contemporary advantages in access to:

… have helped create and sustain advantages in wealth accumulation.

Since the “Great Recession,” wealth gap widest in 25 yrsWhite net worth = 20 X wealth of Blacks; 18 X wealth of HispanicsIn 2009, one-quarter of all Black, Hispanic households had ZERO assets.

Source: Pew Research CenterPew Social & Demographic Trends ReportWealth Gaps Rise to Record Highs Between Whites, Blacks, Hispanics July 26,2011

Net Worth by Race

Parents/Grandparents of WHITE AMERICANS:

Parents/Grandparents of BLACK AMERICANS:

Had higher incomes/earned salaries

Accumulated retirement through union membership, participation in social security, etc.

Benefited from home ownership policies and were able to buy property in rising neighborhoods.

Had lower incomes because of educational segregation and discrimination in employment.

Were denied access to suburban real estate because of exclusionary brokering and community planning

Were denied low-interest Federal Housing Authority mortgage loans due to “redlining”

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

WE ARE

HERE

National ValuesSuch as:

Equal opportunity: • A “level playing field”

Meritocracy: • Advancement depends on talent and

effort

Individualism/ Personal Responsibility:

• Individual choices and behaviors determine outcomes

Often implies inherent laziness and a poor work ethic for

many people of color.

These views can be held by whites or POC

National ValuesFor too many people of color, these national values do not apply:

Equal Opportunit

yReinforces the

myth that individual skills and effort wholly

determine outcomes

Negates the material and psychological advantages of some groups

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

WE ARE

HERE

Societal norms, values and practices reinforce racial stereotypes and emphasize “innate” capacities of

different groups.

The media’s creation and perpetuation of racial stereotypes

has been particularly pernicious. For example…

Contemporary Culture

Perceptions of Young Black Men

• It becomes common sense to deny public resources, judge them differently

• People can point to culture as an individual not structural impediment to progress.

• These stereotypes are often recycled and have appeared in the past.

When people are seen as possessing “deficient” or “deviant” cultural practices:

Cultural Perceptions:“Everything’s in a Name”

Percentage of applicants that received interview requests:Common WHITE names

Source: Alan B. Krueger. Economic Scene: sticks and stones can break bones, but the wrong name can make a job hard to find. The New York Times. (December 1, 2002), C2.

Ebony Latonya

Kenya Latoya TanishaLakishaTamikaKeishaAisha

Average6.9%

KristenCarrieLaurieMeredith

Sarah Allison Jill

Anne Emily

Average10.3%

Common BLACK names

Influence of Cultural Perceptions in determining outcomes in opportunity

domains

Source: The Civil Rights Project. “Opportunities Suspended: The Devastating Consequences of Zero Tolerance and School Discipline.” Harvard University. (2000): P.8.

Internalized White Privilege

“…an invisible package of unearned assets which I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was meant to remain oblivious….”

- Peggy Macintosh, “White Privilege:

Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.”

Contents of a Knapsack• I can go shopping alone most of the time, pretty well

assured that I will not be followed or harassed.

• I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.

• I am never asked to speak for all the people of my racial group.

• I can if I wish arrange to be in the company of people of my race most of the time.

• If a traffic cop pulls me over or if the IRS audits my tax return, I can be sure I haven't been singled out because of my race.

• I do not have to educate my children to be aware of systemic racism for their own daily physical protection.

Internalized Oppression by African Americans

“Stereotype Threat” • African American students perform as well

as their white peers on exams when they are told the test is merely an exercise

• They perform more poorly than their white peers when told that the exam is intended to assess their competence and intelligence

Source: http://www.ReduceStereotypeThreat.org

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

WE ARE

HERE

Structural Racism is reconstructed and preserved through various sorting processes, such as …

Marginalization

Social Isolation & Exclusion

Exploitation

Included but

relegated

Notincluded

Taken advantage

of

… that often reposition groups of color … rather than eliminate racial hierarchy.

Latin Americans – Examples of exclusion, marginalization, exploitationPressure to deport illegal Mexican workersSouthern border fencePeriodic “English only” campaignsCommunity mobilizations against “day

laborers.” Occupation segregation, e.g., Mexicans

relegated to low-wage jobs in food service industry, agriculture, construction

Deportation initiativesLabor exploitation in agriculture (migrant

farm workers), manufacturing (the garment industry), and home care (housekeeping, child and elder care).

Another social process that maintainsracial hierarchies…

Progress and Retrenchment:

Progress has been made through major “racial equality” victories

Gains on some fronts are often challenged, neutralized or undermined.

Significant backlashes develop in key public policy areas.

BUT

A recent retrenchment example…

A 2008 report from United for a Fair Economy estimates that the total loss of wealth for people of color from subprime loans

taken out between 2000 and 2008 will be between

$164 and $213 Billion.

Source: Amaad Rivera et al. Foreclosed: State of the Dream, 2008. United for a Fair Economy. January 15, 2008.

Structural Racism and Racial Inequities

Contemporary Culture

Historically Accumulated

White PrivilegeNational Values

Social Processes Maintaining

RacialHierarchies

Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions

Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

Knowledge or Ideological Context

Social Manifestations

Institutional Manifestations

Education

Environment

Employment

Housing

Health

CriminalJustice

Video: An Example of Structural Racism?

“The Color Line and the Bus Line”◦Nightline by Ted Koppel

Table Exercise: Break into small groupsIdentify one racial inequity in

MichiganIdentify the historical originIdentify a contemporary policy or

practice that helps perpetuate itIdentity an aspect of

contemporary culture that helps perpetuate it

In Conclusion….

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

Why focus on structural racism?

Structural causes of inequalities are difficult to see because:

We are so embedded in themThey are woven into the fabric of our

assumptions about how things operateThey are self-perpetuating and don’t require

active work to be maintained

“Fish don’t notice the water they’re swimming in”

What does the Structural Racism Framework mean for people who

want to reduce inequities? It means four types of changes in the way

we work:

• Internal change

• Policy change

• Practice change

• Cultural/representational change

“Internal” Change

Accepting and establishing racial equity as a central tenet and operating principle in our work to improve outcomes in our internal work environment.

For example: Focus not just on improving outcomes for all but also

on reducing racial gaps

Focus not just on diversity in the workplace, but also on racial equity in opportunities for advancement and leadership

“Policy” change:

Working on the fundamental rules of the game within your organization and your field, and not shrinking from challenging traditional power bases and networks.

For example:• Focus on the fundamental distribution of resources

in terms of money, infrastructure, and opportunities within your organization and outside your organization

“Practice” Change:

Focusing carefully on all of the ways in which standard practices reproduce – or fail to counteract – racially disparate outcomes.

For example:• Critically examine informal practices within your

organization and their impact on racial and ethnic minorities (e.g. mentoring, access to positions which lead to leadership opportunities, visibility etc.)

“Cultural” or “representational” change:

Reframing and changing stereotypical messages, images and interpretations of information about people of color.

For Example:• Challenge assumptions that employees, board

members, policymakers, the citizens of our communities, and other key actors bring to discussions about people of color because these assumptions “frame” how problems are perceived and how solutions are developed.

PROJECT BREAKTHROUGH: CHANGING THE STORY OF RACE IN JACKSONVILLE

A partnership of • The Community Foundation in Jacksonville, • The Jacksonville Human Rights Commission, • The OneJax Institute

Since 2008, Project Breakthrough has worked on:

Promoting Civic Leadership: Convened Jacksonville’s key leaders in a seminar on structural racism

Changing Key Policies and Practices:• Conducted training seminars for middle- & high-school educators• Developed a curriculum for judges in Florida

Changing Media Messages:• Convened Jacksonville’s media professionals in a seminar• Conducted training seminars for the staff of the city’s newspaper, The

Florida Times Union

Constructing a Racial Equity Theory of Change

Desired Racial Equity Outcome

BuildingBlock

P +/- P +/- R+/- P+/- R+/-P +/-P +/-R +/-P +/-

Who has most power, influence to shape PPRs

Possible sources of retrenchment

Assess our organizational capacity realistically

BuildingBlock

BuildingBlock

BuildingBlock

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What we want

Our priorities

What helps, hinders

What wemust know

What we must do

How governance works in our context

Given our capacities, decide role we can play, set strategic priorities, identify allies

Take action!!

Thank You

The Aspen InstituteRoundtable on Community Change281 Park Avenue South, 5th Floor

New York, NY 10010(212) 677-5510