1. A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING THE CAUSES OF RACIAL INEQUITIES IN 21ST CENTURY AMERICA
Presented by:
The Aspen Institute
Roundtable on Community Change
Anne Kubisch, Keith Lawrence, Raymond Codrington
October 2, 2012
Detroit, MI

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. Source: Kaiser Family Foundation State Health Facts. http://www

6. Source: Race Matters for Michigan Children, 2011. http://www

7. How is structural racism different?
Common explanations of entrenched racial and/or ethnic disparity:
Individual
Institutional
Structural

8. Racism at the individual or inter-group level:
…these are important, and
these personal attitudes and beliefs color decision-making and actions.
Personal prejudice
Racial slurs, the n-word
Inter-group tensions
Solution strategies include:
Diversity and multi-culturalism
Cultural competence

9. institutional and structural
The bigger problem…
Racism at the
institutional and structural
levels

10. Institutional Racism Educa-tion Employ-ment Housing Environ-ment
Criminal Justice
Health

11. Examples of Institutional Racism
Discriminatory practices, intentional or not
Redlining or “steering”
Occupational segregation
Racial profiling

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

13. Institutional Racism:
A Systems Perspective
Educa-tion
Employ-ment
Housing
Environ-ment
Criminal Justice
Health

14. Structural Racism Culture History Values Educa-tion Employ-ment
Housing
Environ-ment
Criminal Justice
Health
History
Values

15. and cultural representations
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.

16. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

17. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
WE ARE HERE
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

18. Historically Accumulated White Privilege
Whites’ historical and contemporary advantages in access to:
quality education
decent jobs
livable wages
home ownership
retirement benefits
… have helped create and sustain
advantages in wealth accumulation.

19. Net Worth by Race
Source: Pew Research Center
Pew Social & Demographic Trends Report
Wealth Gaps Rise to Record Highs Between Whites, Blacks, Hispanics July 26,2011
Since the “Great Recession,” wealth gap widest in 25 yrs
White net worth = 20 X wealth of Blacks; 18 X wealth of Hispanics
In 2009, one-quarter of all Black, Hispanic households had ZERO assets.

20. Parents/Grandparents of 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”

21. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
WE ARE HERE
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

22. National Values Such as: Equal opportunity: A “level playing field”
Meritocracy:
Advancement depends on talent and effort
Individualism/ Personal Responsibility:
Individual choices and behaviors determine outcomes

23. Often implies inherent laziness and a poor work ethic for
National Values
For too many people of color, these national values do not apply:
Negates the material and psychological advantages of some groups
Often implies inherent laziness
and a poor work ethic for
many people of color.
These views can be held
by whites or POC
Equal Opportunity
Reinforces the myth that individual skills and effort wholly determine outcomes

24. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
WE ARE HERE
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

25. Societal norms, values and practices
Contemporary Culture
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…

26. Perceptions of Young Black Men
When people are seen as possessing “deficient” or “deviant” cultural practices:
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.

27. Cultural Perceptions: “Everything’s in a Name”
Percentage of applicants that received interview requests:
Common WHITE names
Common BLACK names
Kristen
Carrie
Laurie
Meredith
Sarah
Allison
Jill
Anne
Emily
Average 10.3%
Ebony
Latonya
Kenya
Latoya
Tanisha
Lakisha
Tamika
Keisha
Aisha
Average 6.9%
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.

28. 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 .

29. 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.”

30. 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.

31. 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:

32. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
WE ARE HERE
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

33. Structural Racism is reconstructed and preserved through various sorting processes, such as …
Marginalization
Social Isolation
& Exclusion
Exploitation
Included
but
relegated
Taken
advantage of
Not
included
… that often reposition groups of color … rather than eliminate racial hierarchy.

34. Latin Americans – Examples of exclusion, marginalization, exploitation
Pressure to deport illegal Mexican workers
Southern border fence
Periodic “English only” campaigns
Community mobilizations against “day laborers.”
Occupation segregation, e.g., Mexicans relegated to low- wage jobs in food service industry, agriculture, construction
Deportation initiatives
Labor exploitation in agriculture (migrant farm workers), manufacturing (the garment industry), and home care (housekeeping, child and elder care).

35. Another social process that maintains racial hierarchies…
Progress and Retrenchment:
Progress has been made through
major “racial equality” victories
BUT
Gains on some fronts are often challenged, neutralized or undermined.
Significant backlashes develop in key
public policy areas.

36. 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, United for a Fair Economy. January 15, 2008.

37. Structural Racism and Racial Inequities
Knowledge or Ideological Context
Contemporary
Culture
Historically
Accumulated
White Privilege
National
Values
Institutional Manifestations
Social Manifestations
Institutional Racism & Inter-Institutional Interactions
Social Processes
Maintaining Racial
Hierarchies
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Criminal
Justice
Environment
Production & Reproduction of Racial Inequities

38. Video: An Example of Structural Racism?
“The Color Line and the Bus Line”
Nightline by Ted Koppel

39. Table Exercise: Break into small groups
Identify one racial inequity in Michigan
Identify the historical origin
Identify a contemporary policy or practice that helps perpetuate it
Identity an aspect of contemporary culture that helps perpetuate it

40. In Conclusion….
WHAT CAN BE DONE?

41. Why focus on structural racism?
Structural causes of inequalities are difficult to see because:
We are so embedded in them
They are woven into the fabric of our assumptions about how things operate
They are self-perpetuating and don’t require active work to be maintained
“Fish don’t notice the water they’re swimming in”

42. 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

43. “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

44. “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

45. “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.)

46. “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.

47. 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

48. Constructing a Racial Equity Theory of Change

49. Desired Racial Equity Outcome
What we want
Desired Racial Equity Outcome
Building
Block
Building
Block
Building
Block
Building
Block
Building
Block
Our priorities
What helps, hinders
P +/-
P +/-
R+/-
P+/-
P +/-
R +/-
P +/-
P +/-
R+/-
Who has most power, influence to shape PPRs
What we
must know
Possible sources of retrenchment
How governance works in our context
Assess our organizational capacity realistically
What we must do
Given our capacities, decide role we can play, set strategic priorities, identify allies
Take action!!

50. Thank You The Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change
281 Park Avenue South, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10010
(212)