“Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced...neither persons nor property will be safe."- Frederick Douglass
DAY FIFTEEN
Race, Economic Mobility & Opportunity
 
Continuing our conversation on structural racism, today we’ll look at how it influences economic mobility, access to healthy food, access to healthcare and safe immigration. As you’ll see from the resources below many of these topics overlap and codifies our understanding of how structural racism operates. 
READ
Gain a perspective on how new systems of economic oppressions are continuously developed to maintain the racial wealth gap.
*Note: You may receive a prompt to subscribe before reading. If this occurs, try pasting the URL of the article into an incognito tab on your browser. This can potentially allow you to skip over the paywall and read the article for free.
 
Access to a good job, education, health, and whole-family well-being are the foundations of family prosperity - and is an inclusive and expansive definition of family, that honors the multitude of ways in which we live and care for one another.
 
By Raphael Bostic, President and CEO, "As I have observed the protests against police brutality over the past few weeks, I have shared in the outrage of the truly horrific events that brought us to this point. These events are yet another reminder that many of our fellow citizens endure the burden of unjust, exploitative, and abusive treatment by institutions in this country."
 
It may seem counterintuitive, but to close the wealth gap, we must shift our focus from the gap itself to the policies, conditions, and systems that spawned it.
LISTEN
It's a pernicious stereotype, but it was coined in reference to a real woman named Linda Taylor. But her misdeeds were far more numerous and darker than welfare fraud. NPR explores how politicians used one outlier's story to turn the public against government programs for the poor.
 
America's Caste System (40 Minutes)
“Race” is often used as a fundamental way to understand American history. But what If “caste” is the more appropriate lens? In conversation with Pulitzer Prize winner Isabel Wilkerson, we examine the hidden system that has shaped our country.” In this episode of NPR's Throughline, she (Isabel Wilkerson) talked about caste as the bones, race as the skin, and class as the clothing we put on. The podcast presents a really powerful new framework for the different experiences of Americans from race to caste.
 
Our recommended selection for today from UWPC's "Soundtrack 4 Justice" playlist
"The Message" by Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five (7:12).
WATCH
The State of Working America Podcast’s debut episode features economist Valerie Wilson, from the Economic Policy Institute, discussing the central role of race in the American economy. Wilson debunks the widely-held myth that education is an easy way to narrow the racial wage and wealth gap, explaining that structural racism runs much deeper.
 
Cory Booker and others discuss how slavery, housing discrimination, and centuries of inequality have compounded to create a racial wealth gap. From Netflix.
NOTICE
How is the poverty rate determined in the U.S.? What is the origin of this formula, and what are its strengths and weaknesses?

The poverty rate in the United States fell to 11.8 percent in 2018, according to data released last week by the Census Bureau — the lowest it’s been since 2001. But this estimate significantly understates the extent of economic deprivation in the United States today. Our official poverty line hasn’t kept up with economic change. Nor has it been modified to take into account widely held views among Americans about what counts as “poor.” Check out this article by Washington Post to learn more!
CONNECT
Who's in your feed?
Poverty USA Poverty USA | Twitter | Facebook
PUT IT TO USE
Reflect - How do the data and stories in today's challenge compare with the commonly told story that the United States is a land of equal opportunity?
 
JOIN UNITED WAY OF PIERCE COUNTY FOR THE
FINAL EQUITY CONVERSATION
Wednesday, February 24 at noon
United Way of Thurston County solves complicated issues by convening community stakeholders and collaborating to develop short and long-term strategies. United Way is an excellent steward of donor dollars and is committed to transparency, accountability and sound fiscal management. United Way mobilizes the caring power of our community. Learn more: https://www.unitedway-thurston.org/