Our Government Alliance on Racial Equity works with local and regional government across the country to advance racial equity in their jurisdictions. Learn more.
Following up on the two years since the release of Building the We, this report explores the efforts of a community-focused collaborative government decision-making process.
[VIDEO] In a context of mounting racial tension, Salinas government and community advocates collaborated to bring about a new initiative aimed at addressing the root causes of inequity and division within the city. "Building the We," published by Race Forward, features key successes and lessons from the local leaders who ushered in a new agenda for the City of Salinas: Healing-Informed Governing for Racial Equity.
Recovery, Interrupted: Gulf Coast Communities of Color Five Years After Hurricane Katrina, a new report by the Center for Social Inclusion, reminds us that disasters are not simply about strong winds or powerful explosions. They are about access to opportunity. Whether quality health services, educational options and public transit are available to and affordable for residents has a tremendous influence on how a community will fare in the face of threats. All too often, the communities that are most vulnerable to disaster are communities of color or poor communities of all races that lack access to such critical opportunities.
In these challenging times, Americans must contend with corporate irresponsibility—like British Petroleum’s failure to address safety concerns on its rigs, increasingly frequent hurricanes and tornadoes in the Gulf Coast region and beyond, and crumbling roads, bridges and schoolhouses. Less obvious but even more important are the increasing poverty and social dislocation experienced by too many Americans. In 2009, the poverty rate hit an 11-year high of 13.2%— representing nearly 40 million individuals— and between 2000 and 2009 median weekly wages fell for high school and college graduates alike.
