Tools for Dismantling Structural Racism
As part of the Roundtable's Project on Structural Racism and Community Building, we identify organizations that have created materials,tools, methodologies, etc. that are potentially useful to community builders working to dismantle structural racism. Below is a preliminary list of organizations, along with brief descriptions of their anti-racism tools. We classify each tool according to type (strategic, analytic, educational, etc.); level (does it address individual-, organizational-, community-, institutional-, or structural-level problems); and domain (education, criminal justice, employment, regionalism, etc.). New additions are made regularly. Recommendations are welcome, and can be addressed to Gretchen Susi at gretchens@aspenroundtable.org.
Contents, by Organizaton:
AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC, 20002
202-336-6029 (tel)
publicinterest@apa.org
Mission: The object of the American Psychological Association is to advance psychology as a science and profession and as a means of promoting human welfare by: the encouragement of psychology in all its branches in the broadest and most liberal manner; the promotion of research in psychology and the improvement of research methods and conditions; the improvement of the qualifications and usefulness of psychologists through high standards of ethics, conduct, education, and achievement; the establishment and maintenance of the highest standards of professional ethics and conduct of the members of the association; the increase and diffusion of psychological knowledge through meetings, professional contacts, reports, papers, discussions, and publications and thereby to advance scientific interests and inquiry, and the application of research findings to the promotion of the public welfare.
Geographic Focus: National (international)
Resources/Publications:
Racism & Psychology: Why we dislike, stereotype, and hate other groups and what to do about it: This brochure, which is available as a traditional brochure and on the APAs website, presents questions and answers related to individual-level racism. Some examples of questions include: What is racism? What can psychology tell us about prejudice, discrimination, and racism? If the brain is so efficient at categorization, why doesn't experience correct inaccurate stereotypes? and Is it okay to harbor stereotypes if I just keep them to myself and treat everybody the same anyway? Responses to the questions range from half-page to full page in length.
Type of Tool: educational
Levels Assessed: individual
Domain Addressed: general anti-racism
Annotated Bibliography of Psychology & Racism: This annotated bibliography was developed as a resource for a 1997 APA convention on psychology and racism. It is structured by three themes: Psychology of Racism, Racism in Psychology, and Psychology of Anti-racism. The bibliography is designed as a resource for psychologists and others interested in understanding and taking action against racism.
Type of Tool: educational
Levels Assessed: individual, institutional
Domain Addressed: general anti-racism
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ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION
701 St. Paul Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
ph: 410-547-6600
fax: 410-547-3610
webmail@aecf.org
Mission: The Annie E. Casey Foundation supports and sponsors research, programs, and projects that seeks to comprehend and address the needs of vulnerable children and families.
Resources/Publications:
Race Matters: This toolkit, published by the Annie E. Case Foundation, is designed to equip foundation officials, program officers, policy makers, advocates, and community-based non-profit practitioners with strategies for furthering racial equity “Race Matters” advocates a “racial equity impact analysis” to target “embedded racial inequities.” As well as shifts in organizational and programmatic focus. For example, from focus on individual-level problems to problems of policy and practice; from race neutral data analysis to racially disaggregated data analysis; from an internal organizational emphasis on diversity to an emphasis on staff competencies and organizational policies and practices that have a racial equity oriented lens. In order to frame the relation between racial disparity and different kinds of non-profit work, the toolkit provides fact sheets with data and analysis of racial disparities, and strategies for achieving greater racial equity in various sectors, including health, education, adolescent sexual health, economic opportunity, neighborhood vitality, civic participation, child welfare, juvenile justice, and news media coverage. “Race Matters” also provides a number of tools for introducing and implementing a racial equity lens, including: a race matters power point that can provide organization staff with shared language to understand racial disparity; “What’s Race Got to Do With It?”, a tool which promotes evidence-based decision-making about racial disparities; methods for assessing the impact of investment decisions upon racial equity; “System Reform Strategies,” a tool which helps advocates, officials, and practitioners approach their efforts to improve systems such as foster care, lending, and real estate practice with an eye to racial equity and equal opportunity; and “Community Building Strategies,” a tool with advice on how to supplement existing community building practice with an emphasis on racially equitable results.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: organizational, institutional, structural
DOMAIN: racial equity in philanthropy, policy, and community building
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APPLIED RESEARCH CENTER (ARC)
3781 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94611
510-653-3415 (tel)
arc@arc.org
Key Contact: Gary Delgado, Executive Director
Mission: The Applied Research Center is a public policy, educational and research institute whose work emphasizes issues of race and social change.
Geographical Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Developing an Equity Impact Statement: A Tool for Local Policymaking: This tool is a set of questions and actions for a jurisdiction to integrate into its policymaking process. This tool is conceptualized along the lines of an environmental impact statement. It suggests steps, such as identify communities of concern, defining adverse effects, establishing tracking systems, and evaluation and reporting mechanisms. This relatively short document (a total of 7 pp) includes as an appendix a 3-page listing of additional resources for data collection and technical assistance.
TYPE: analytic/strategic
LEVEL: institutional/structural
DOMAIN: regionalism/general
A Grassroots Advocates Guide to Influencing the Local Government Budget ProcessInfluencing Policy-Making Where You Live: At the City and County Level: This guide provides tools for identifying people in relevant positions of power, processes used and institutions that are inherently involved in budget processes. It also lays out methods for use in influencing budget processes, such as forging alliances with supportive politicians, contacting budget staff, meeting with relevant agency heads, and presenting alternative budgetsto name a few.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: institutional/structural
DOMAIN: general
Developing Policy Goals: A short guide for assessing organizational capacity.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: general
Facing the Consequences: An Examination of Racial Discrimination in US Public Schools: This volume puts forth recommendations for producing a racial equity report for schools. The accompanying computer program/database application, The Racial Justice Report Card program, provides a structure for collection and analysis of equity-oriented data. It records information relevant to 10 key indicators of racial justice (drop out and graduation rates, college acceptance, suspensions, equity of learning resources, etc.).
TYPE: educational, analytic, strategic
LEVEL: institutional/structural
DOMAIN: education
Education & Race: This informational handbook targeted to journalists reveals the racial dimension of the US education system on both local and national levels. Its topics include segregation, discipline, funding (revenue, expenditures, vouchers) curriculum, testing, graduation, drop out and employment rates and court decisions. It is a tool for journalists to address how schools measure up to racial equity standards. There is both a resource book and computer program.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: institutional/structural
DOMAIN: education
Short Changed--Foundation Giving and Communities of Color: This report describes race-related work in the non-profit sector. It provides data on the scarcity of foundation funding for civil rights, racial justice or other initiatives explicitly that target communities of color. In addition, it distinguishes between different kinds of race-related work, lists prominent racial justice organizations, and offers observations and recommendation on racial justice work.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional/structural
DOMAIN: philanthropy, general non-profit
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BUILDING BLOCKS FOR YOUTH
Youth Law Center
1010 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 310
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202 637-0377
Fax: 202 379-1600
Mission: Building Blocks for Youth seeks to reduce racial disparities, unequal treatment, and discrimination in juvenile justice institutions and policy.
Geographic Focus: National
Publications/Resources:
Public Opinion on Youth, Crime and Race: This publication provides information about public perception of race and juvenile justice issues, and suggests the arguments and rhetoric for racial equity in juvenile justice to which the public is most receptive. For example, surveys find that the public is convinced by the argument that “A system that does little more than lock up juveniles will lead to more crime, not less.” At the same time, however, the public places a high value of responsibility and accountability. Juvenile justice reformers should there craft messages that emphasize responsibility along with a pragmatic concern for finding alternatives to incarceration while effectively reducing juvenile crime.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: Institutional
DOMAIN: juvenile justice
No Turning Back--Promising Approaches to Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities Affecting Youth of Color in the Justice System: This publication provides information on the efforts of advocates, public officials, and policy makers to reduce racial disparity and “disparate minority contact” in the juvenile justice system. The report describes programs that aim for policy reform, such as a requirements that juveniles be tried in juvenile rather than adult court, as well as organizing campaigns to prevent prison construction and government-community collaborations to reduce disparate minority treatment in juvenile justice. Lessons learned from these efforts include the need for an intentional and explicit focus on racial disparity, and the importance of solid data and media advocacy in achieving reforms.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: Institutional
DOMAIN: juvenile justice
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BUS RIDERS UNION
3780 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 1200
Los Angeles, CA 90010
213-387-2800 (tel)
213-387-3500 (fax)
laborctr@igc.org
www.busridersunion.org and www.thestrategycenter.org
Mission: The B.R.U. is a project of the Labor/ Community Strategy Center. It represents the mass transit and public health needs of the transit dependent. The B.R.U promotes environmentally sustainable public transportation for the entire population of Los Angeles on the premise that affordable, efficient, and environmentally sound mass transit it a human right . . . organizing and public policy work reflects the principle that human and ecological needs are the leading social, political, and economic priority; it openly challenges the corporate profit motive and management rights as the arbiter of social policy. The B.R.U. is committed to fight racism, class oppression, sexism and oppression of immigrants. In addition, our work welcomes disabled, gays, lesbians, elderly and youth in order to defend and expand social, political and economic rights of historically oppressed communities in the struggle for economic democracy and redistribution of wealth.
Geographic Focus: Los Angeles, CA
Resources/Publications:
National School for Strategic Organizing: The schools mission is to organize for alternatives and concrete victories through direct organizing in work that builds a new community and transforms the organizer. Organizers-in-training for the Strategy Center, an environmental and social justice "think tank/act tank," participate in the Bus Riders Union, challenging corporate-driven transit policy, directly organizing to build a multiracial organization on wheels. The training happens at three levels: Weekly political education classes; Mentorship with senior organizers and members; and Direct participation in at least one of the Center's ongoing campaigns.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: individual, institutional, spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
A New Vision of Urban Transportation: The Bus Riders Unions Mass Transit Campaign: Describes the organizing theory and practice of the B.R.U.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual, institutional, spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
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CALIFORNIA TOMORROW
436 14th Street, Suite 820
Oakland, CA 94612
510-496-0220 (tel)
510-496-0225 (fax)
Mission: California Tomorrow is a nonprofit organization working to help build a strong and fair multiracial, multicultural, multilingual society that is equitable for everyone. We believe creating such a society involves promoting equal opportunity and participationsocial, economic and educationaland embracing our diversity as our greatest strength. California Tomorrows primary focus on people, organizations and communities in California. Since our work is connected to national trends, we also share lessons learned from the California experience, draw upon the knowledge of colleagues working on similar issues across the US and join with others to influence national policies and practices which impact our respective work.
Geographical Focus: California
Resources/Publications:
Walking the Walk: Principles for Building Community Capacity for Equity & Diversity: Designed particularly to address the race, language, culture and class issues that arise within community collaboratives. This booklet is based on site visits and surveys as well as the organizations experience in the field. Suggestions for the difficult task of approaching these difficult issues are provided and 9 principles (e.g. building trust, recognizing multiple realities, fighting exclusion) for capacity building that promotes equity and values diversity are put forth. Case studies of programs illustrate the use of these 9 principles. A tool helps individuals and initiatives to assess their underlying conceptions and process accompanies the book.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: education
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CENTER FOR ASSESSMENT AND POLICY DEVELOPMENT (CAPD)
1622 Riverside Drive
Trenton, NJ 08618
Phone: 609.334.6904
Email: sstephens@capd.org
268 Barren Hill Rd.
Conshohocken, PA 19428
Phone: 610.828.1063
Email: sleiderman@capd.org
Geographical Focus: national
Publications/Resources:
Project Change Evaluation Research Brief: This resource describes the methods of evaluation for the Project Change initiative. CAPD evaluated Project Change, a multiracial anti-racism initiative in four communities, between 1994-1998. The report describes the challenges for evaluation of anti-racism programs, methods of evaluation, findings from evaluation, as well as the particular efforts made by grantees in the four sites. This resource provides valuable information about the theory, structure and results of an anti-racism initiatives and the means by which that initiative could be evaluated.
TYPE: analytical
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: evaluation
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CENTER FOR COMMUNITY CHANGE (CCC)
1000 Wisconsin Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20007
202-342-0567 (tel)
202-333-5462 (fax)
106 Sansome St., 7th St.
San Francisco, CA 94104
415-982-0346 (tel)
415-956-6880 (fax)
www.communitychange.org
Mission: The Center for Community Change is committed to reducing poverty and rebuilding low income communities. To do this, we help people to develop the skills and resources they need to improve their communities as well as change policies and institutions that adversely affect their lives. We believe that poor people themselvesthrough organizations they controlneed to lead efforts to eliminate poverty.
Geographic Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
How and Why to Influence Public Policy: An Action Guide for Community Organizations: This guide explains how to do advocacy, how to pick winning issues, and what community leaders can do legally. Additional information is provided on how to educate and register voters.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: institutional, structural
DOMAIN: general
Getting to Work: An Organizer's Guide to Transportation Equity: Explains the federal transportation bill of 1998 and how to organize around transportation issues. Provides examples of successful organizing efforts.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
Saved by an Education: A Successful Model for Dramatically Increasing High School Graduation Rates in Low Income Neighborhoods: This document is a report on the Public Housing Graduates Demonstration Project. Purpose of report is to encourage and help people to start a Public Housing Graduates-type program in their communities.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: individual, institutional
DOMAIN: education
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THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF SOCIAL POLICY
1575 Eye Street N.W. Suite 500
Washington D.C. 20005
Phone: (202) 371-1565
Fax: (202) 371-1472
Mission: The Center for the Study of Social Policy provides tools and research to help organizations and governments to improve outcomes for distressed communities, families, and children.
Geographic Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Promising Practices to Address Racial Disproportionality (2006): This report, from the Center for the Study of Social Policy, offers case studies of ten sites where government, non-profit organizations, and communities collaborated on extensive programs to address racial disproportionality in the child welfare system: San Francisco, California; Connecticut; Illinois; Sioux City, Iowa; Michigan; Ramsey County, Minnesota; Guilford County, North Carolina; Wake County, North Carolina. The report begins with a summary of the research on disproportionality in child welfare, and then details how each of these ten sites became aware of racial inequities in the child welfare system, and how they then sought to redress the problem. Each site experienced its own motivations and crafted different kinds of solutions, but the projects share certain general features and dynamics that constitute a “trajectory” for racial equity reform in child welfare. First, most sites worked with the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Family to Family Initiative or the Casey Family Programs’ Breakthrough Series Collaborative (The Family to Family initiative seeks to strengthen families, prevent out of home removal, improving child welfare services, and increasing the pool of quality foster and kinship families. The Breakthrough Series Collaborative on Reducing Disproportionality and Disparate Outcomes for Children and Families of Color in the Child Welfare System includes thirteen teams nationwide testing strategies to ameliorate disproportionality while providing one another and the field with lessons learned). In each site, state or local leaders identified racial disproportionality in their child welfare systems and determined it was a problem that needed to be addressed. They then analyzed child welfare outcome data by race and ethnicity, to find in what ways the system had taken on a racially disproportionate clientele. Most of the sites then established a “visible and authoritative entity,” such as a special commission, cross-agency management group, or task forces to spearhead their efforts. Most of the sites made intentional effort to reach out to and establish connections with target communities, conducted policy research and advocacy, and practiced ongoing evaluation. All sites sought external funding to support their work. While this report does not provide data on the impact of these projects on racial disproportionality, it does give detailed accounts of the most innovative and comprehensive work being done to promote racial equity in child welfare.
TYPE: analytical
LEVEL: Institutional
DOMAIN: Child Welfare
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EVALUATION TOOLS FOR RACIAL EQUITY
sleiderman@capd.org
Mission: To provide technical assistance to organizations working to further racial equity.
Geographic Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Glossary for Racial Equity provides definitions for key terms in racial equity work.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional, structural
DOMAIN: evaluation
Doing Your Evaluation provides detailed information and tip sheets about evaluating racial equity work, including design, data collection, analysis and lesson dissemination.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional, structural
DOMAIN: evaluation
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EVERYDAY DEMOCRACY (FORMERLY THE STUDY CIRCLES RESOURCE CENTER)
111 Founders Plaza, Suite 1403
East Hartford, CT 06108
860-928-2616 (tel)
860-928-3713 (fax)
info@everyday-democracy.org
www.everyday-democracy.org
Mission: Everyday Democracy (formerly the Study Circles Resource Center) is a national organization that helps local communities find ways for all kinds of people to think, talk and work together to solve problems. We work with neighborhoods, cities and towns, regions, and states, helping them pay particular attention to how racism and ethnic differences affect the problems they address.
Everyday Democracy was created as the Study Circles Resource Center in 1989 by The Paul J. Aicher Foundation, a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization. Since 1989, we have worked with more than 550 communities across the United States on many different public issues.
Geographical Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
The Busy Citizens Discussion Guide: Facing the Challenge of Racism and Race Relations: Among other publications, the Study Circles Resource Center has produced The Busy Citizens Discussion Guide: Facing the Challenge of Racism and Race Relations. The guide helps those participating in Study Circles discussions, fashioned after a small study group, to engage in dialogue about issues of race and racism. The Busy Citizens Discussion Guide focuses on the individual level. Each section of the guide puts forth a particular topic (e.g. Race relations and racism: experiences, perceptions and beliefs and Dealing with race: What is the nature of the problem?). Within each section are questions for discussion, such as Do you have friends of other races? If not, why? If so, how did you get to know them? and How do you help your children deal with racism? How do you help them understand race relations? Within each section these questions are followed with Cases, or real-life scenarios that touch upon race-related issues to which participants are asked to respond. Two examples of Cases include:
- A white man who wants to be on the police force is not hired, while several minority applicants with equal scores on the qualifying test are hired.
- A black couple tells their children to be extra careful at the shopping mall. The parents remind the children to stay together, and they also advise the children to keep receipts for everything they buy. After considering each Case, participants are asked to respond to the Cases in terms of what they think the individuals in the Cases should do, and how organizations (such as businesses, congregations, civic groups) and government should respond to such scenarios.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Facing Racism in a Diverse Nation: This guide, published by Everyday Democracy, provides detailed advice to communities on framing dialogues and deliberations over racism. The six-session discussion guide helps all kinds of people take part in meaningful dialogue to examine gaps among racial and ethnic groups and create institutional and policy change. The guide advocates and provides a blueprint for the creation “dialogues,” to enable open and productive discussion of race-related topics. For example, the guide offers hypothetical cases about racially-charged scenarios for discussion, graphs that demonstrate racial disparity, and provides a “community report card” for participants to assess racial equity in their communities. Also check out Dialogue for Affinity Groups, a supplemental guide intended to give people with similar racial or ethnic backgrounds an opportunity to talk about issues of racism.
TYPE: strategic, educational LEVEL: organizational, community, individual, structural DOMAIN: general anti-racism, racial equity, poverty, education, immigration
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THE FORD FOUNDATON
Ford Foundation
320 East 43rd Street
New York, NY 10017 USA
tel: (212) 573-5000
fax: (212) 351-3677
email: office-of-communications@fordfound.org,
Mission: to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement.
Geographic Focus: National and International
Resources/Publications:
Why We Can’t Wait: A Case for Philanthropic Action: Opportunities for Improving Life Outcomes for African American Males (Littles et al., 2007): reviews programs, policies, services, and research that address and impact outcomes for African American males. The report provides a comprehensive review of the problems, opportunities, structure, and dynamics of research and activism in this field. It locates systemic problems, such as: organizational capacity; the disconnect between researchers and practitioners; institutional impediments to research about African American males at the university level; the lack of central clearinghouses for relevant research; the paucity of communication and networking between practitioners; and the failure of researchers and practitioners to investigate and target outcomes for African American males apart from larger umbrella groups, such as disadvantaged, at risk, disconnected, or out-of-school youth. The report also provides statistics on racial disparity, and includes an appendix listing organizations, programs, and initiatives that the authors researched or interviewed for the report.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional, organizational, community, structural
DOMAIN: education, criminal justice, child welfare, health, employment
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THE FINANCE PROJECT
1000 Vermont Avenue, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20005
202-628-4200 (tel)
202-628-4205 (fax)
chayes@financeproject.org
www.financeproject.org
Mission: to support decision making that produces and sustains good results for children, families, and communities, The Finance Project develops and disseminates information, knowledge, tools, and technical assistance for improved policies, programs, and financing strategies.
Geographic Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Building Strong Communities: Crafting a Legislative Foundation: This tool is intended to assist state and local leaders who are writing bills and formulating strategies to create effective state/community partnerships to improve supports and services for children and their families. The kit includes sample state legislation, a guide for tailoring the legislation to the context of specific states, a review and analysis of relevant federal and state legislative efforts for building comprehensive, community-based support systems and a guide to references and further information.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: institutional, structural
DOMAIN: general
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GRANTCRAFT
GrantCraft
The Ford Foundation
320 East 43rd Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 573-4879
Mission: Grantcraft is Ford Foundation project that provides technical assistance, as well as strategic guidance to grantmakers, in order to better facilitate their philanthropic work. Grantcraft offers tools such as guides, cases, videos, and workshops that provide information on different dimensions of grantmaking, such as racial equity, gender, and community building.
Grant Making With a Racial Equity Lens: This guide, developed by GrantCraft with the Philanthropic Initiative For Racial Equity, provides information for foundations seeking to incorporate a racial equity focus into their grant making. It explains the centrality of a racial equity lens to a range of philanthropic missions, since racial disparities, and racialized structures and institutions often form implicit and forceful barriers against philanthropy’s various efforts to promote social and economic justice. The guide details how foundations can make racial equity a central aspect of their grant making, from the information required in grant proposals to the methods of assessment. In addition, it offers tools, such as a table for collecting diversity data, as well as many anecdotes from foundations that have begun to employ the racial equity lens in their work.
Type: educational
Level: organizational, institutional, structural
Domain: racial equity in philanthropy
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THE HIGHLANDER CENTER
1959 Highlander Way
New Market, TN 37820
(865) 933-3443
Highlander is committed to working with grassroots leaders and community groups to help bring about social change through collective action. The centers social concerns include civil rights, community empowerment, cultural diversity, economic democracy, environmental justice, global education, labor rights, leadership training of youth and adults, sexual discrimination and womens rights.
Resources/Publications:
Claiming What is Ours: An Economics Experience Workbook: This publication is a handbook and workbook for educating communities about their economic history and context. It helps users to articulate their experiences as economic actors through relating experiences, creating maps, data collection and analysis as well as guided discussion. The workbook also provides a template for charting a communitys current economy.
TYPE: educational, analytic
LEVEL: individual (community)
DOMAIN: employment (political economy)
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INSTITUTE ON RACE & POVERTY (IRP)
University of Minnesota Law School
415 Law Center
229 19th Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455
612-625-8071 (tel)
612-624-8890 (fax)
irp@tc.umn.edu
Mission: IRP . . . is a national strategic research center focusing on issues particular to the intersections of race and poverty. The Institutes research is strategic in nature, focused and relevant to low-income communities of color. The Institutes long term goals are to stimulate public awareness of issues of race and poverty; influence constructive consideration of race & poverty in public policy determinations; promote dialogue and collaboration among concerned groups and individuals; develop plans and action to eliminate the root causes of concentrated race and poverty; and serve as a clearinghouse of relevant resources and information.
Geographic Focus: National/Minnesota
Resources/Publications:
Political Advocacy & Policy Development: IRP provides data, testimony, and consultation on issues and policies concerning low-income communities of color. IRP staff consult with community leaders, government agencies, members of the press, policymakers, and elected representatives.
TYPE: educational, analytic, strategic
LEVEL: institutional, spatial, structural
DOMAIN: general
Legal Consultation & Technical Assistance to Communities: Offers specialized information, legal consultation, and support to organizations, academic researchers, community groups, private corporations and individual advocates engaged in social justice work.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: institutional, spatial, structural
DOMAIN: general
Public Education & Community Outreach: IRPs public education and community outreach include: public speaking, presentations, seminary and symposia, expert testimony, local, regional and national conferences and frequent collaboration with community groups and policymakers.
TYPE: educational, analytic, strategic
LEVEL: --
DOMAIN: regionalism
Opportunity Mapping: Production and analysis of maps with information on demographics which provide data used to assess the sufficiency of opportunity and to identify issues to be confronted in addressing poverty. Also track quality of life issues including cost of land development and criminal activity.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
National Urban Survey: Gathers literature and data on how urban and regional policies and programs affect poor urban communities of color. The NUS focuses on how these
programs affect racial segregation, poverty, land use patterns, fiscal disparity,
employment, housing and education.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: institutional, spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
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JOINT CENTER FOR POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC STUDIES
1090 Vermont Avenue, NW, Suite 1100
Washington, DC, 20005-4961
202-789-3522 (tel)
202-789-6390 (fax)
mpotapchuk@jointcenter.org
Mission: The Joint Center informs and illuminates the nations major public policy debates through research, analysis, and information dissemination in order to: Improve the socioeconomic status of black Americans; Expand their effective participation in the political and public policy arenas; and Promote communications and relationships across racial and ethnic lines to strengthen the nations pluralistic society.
Geographic Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Steps toward an inclusive community: The story of Clarksburg, West Virginia: A tool for assessing your communitys inclusiveness: This tool is intended for civic officials and community leaders who seek to build inclusive communities. It is targeted predominately white, moderate-sized towns. A set of questions helps to determine a towns racial climate by generalized descriptions of behaviors and attitudes. The instrument also includes suggestions for next steps based on a communitys inclusivity stage. There is a section on historical background on WV. White privilege is defined, examples are provided and racism is put forth as a social situation affecting all races negatively.
The tool allows readers to reflect on a few questions and responses to determine what state their community is in. The instrument describes each of these four stagesInvisibility, Awareness, Disequilibrium and Restructuringand provides ideas for interventions focused on increasing citizens awareness of race issues and racial inequalities and developing intergroup skills.
Examples of two questions follow:
- Question: How does the community respond to a racial incident?
Responses: Focus is on the victims behavior (invisibility); response depends on who the perpetrator is (awareness); concern is that the town not get a racist reputation (disequilibrium); there is an emerging community norm: we do not tolerate racist behavior (restructuring).
- Question: What is the majority response to race relations by people of color?
Responses: There is typically little or no response from people of color (invisibility); there is a small group in the community of color that questions things out loud (awareness); there are more people of color who question out loud and begin to work with whites on the issues (disequilibrium); there is a growing group of people of color working with whites and addressing institutional issues (restructuring).
These questions are followed by guidelines on how to respond to resistance to the change process, how to effectively conduct interventions, raise awareness, and assist community members in building their skills around creating and maintaining an inclusive community.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: individual/community
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Soft Skills and the Minority Work Force: A Guide for Informed Discussion and Soft Skills Training: An Annotated Guide to Selected Programs: The Guide for Informed Discussion puts forth an analysis of the term in relation to the minorityespecially African American malesworkforce. Soft skills are defined and a discussion of the implications of soft skills for hiring patterns is presented. The discussion guide contains an annotated bibliography that focuses on defining soft skills, soft skills training practices and assessment of training practices, as well as on soft skills in the context of race and gender.
The Annotated Guide to Selected Programs presents a matrix of programs from around the US. It indicates what type of training each program provides (thinking/cognitive, oral communications, work ethic, interpersonal skills), what populations are served, what type of technical training is provided (e.g. tv and video production, carpentry, etc.), and what assistive services are provided (e.g. health benefits, summer employment, stipend). The matrix is followed by page-long descriptions of each program.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: employment
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NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR COMMUNITY & JUSTICE (NCCJ)
475 Park Avenue South, 19th Floor
New York, NY 10016-6901
Mission: The National Conference for Community and Justice, founded in 1927 as The National Conference of Christians and Jews, is a human relations organization dedicated to fighting bias, bigotry and racism in America. NCCJ promotes understanding and respect among all races, religions and cultures through advocacy, conflict resolution and education.
Geographical Focus: National
Resources/Publications:
Intergroup Relations in the United States: Research Perspectives: This educational tool is intended to bridge the disconnection between the best thinking in the academy and what practitioners use in their day-to-day activities. It provides an analysis of current racial conditions in the United States, background on conceptualizations race since W.E.B. du Bois, as well as an overview of current thinking in the social sciences.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Intergroup Relations in the United States: Programs and Organizations: An annotated directory of programs and organizations that work within the broad area of race and intergroup relations.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
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NEIGHBORHOOD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADVOCACY PROJECT (NEDAP)
73 Spring Street
Suite 503
New York, NY 10012
Telephone: (212) 680-5100
Fax: (212) 680-5104
Mission: The Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy project promotes financial justice for low-income residents of New York City.
Geographical Focus: New York City
Resources/Publications:
Maps: This tool provides maps of bank branch locations, mortgage lending and foreclosures, and other financial information, against the backdrop of New York's racial geography. These highlight the discriminatory effects of macro financial practice.
TYPE: educational, analytical
LEVEL: institutional, structural
DOMAIN: housing, wealth, finance
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POLICYLINK
101 Broadway, Oakland
CA 94607
510-663-2333 (tel)
510-663-9684 (fax)
Mission: The mission of PolicyLink is to lift up and advance, from the wisdom, voice and experience of local constituencies, a new generation of policies that achieve social and economic equity, expand opportunity and build strong, organized communities. In working to fulfill this mission, PolicyLink is working at the local, regional, state and national levels to develop and advocate for policies that support community building, including anti-poverty, income enhancement, neighborhood revitalization and asset/wealth creation strategies.
Geographic Focus: Bay Area, National
Resources/Publications:
Communities Gaining Access to Capital: Social Equity Criteria and Implementation Recommendations for the Capital Investment Initiative (CCII)-December 2000: The CCII is a regional initiative in the Bay Area designed to facilitate capital investment that will create economic opportunity, reduce poverty and promote sustainable development. This report lays out social equity criteria for achieving a double bottom line that accrues both financial and social capital. The report then details examples of organizations and alliances that have successfully carried out such criteria. There is, furthermore, a sample plan called Timing & Targeting of CCII-Facilitated Developments to Maximize Resident Involvement.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: institutional, spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
Briefing Book: Strategies & Examples of Community-Based Approaches to Equity & Smart Growth-2000 (working document): This book was put together for a series of meetings between funders, practitioners, advocates and representatives of national and regional networks concerned with social equity and urban sprawl. The topic areas for the convenings were transportation, leveraging public & private investments for smart and equitable growth, housing opportunity, and workforce development, employment opportunity and smart growth. For each topic area a number (usually 2-4) strategies are laid out. Each set of strategies is followed by short case studies of organizations that are working within the type of strategies that are put forth.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
Community-Centered Policing: A Force for Change: This document identifies promising policing practices from across the US. It discusses the premises of community policing and puts
forth the components necessary for a successful initiative, including the formation of strategic alliances, recruitment guidelines, retention strategies and democratic participation in the overall process.
TYPE: educational, strategic
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: criminal justice
Achieving Equity through Smart Growth: Perspectives from Philanthropy: This report, based on the work of the Funders Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities and PolicyLinks Learning Action Network. It puts forth four building blocks for regional equity: strong regional anchors (partnerships), sophisticated research and analysis, development of regional campaigns, and implementing, monitoring and enforcing outcomes.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism
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PRISON ACTIVIST RESOURCE CENTER (PARC)
PO Box 339, Berkeley CA 94701
510-893-4648 (tel)
510-893-4607 (fax)
parc@prisonactivist.org
Mission: PARC is a source for progressive information on prisons and the criminal prosecution system. PARC is committed to exposing and challenging the institutionalized racism of the criminal injustice system and to further developing anti-racism as individuals and throughout our organization. We provide support for educators, activists, prisoners, and prisoners' families. This work includes building networks for action and producing materials that expose human rights violations while fundamentally challenging the rapid expansion of the prison industrial complex.
Resources/Publications:
Student Prison Activist Network (SPAN): Student Organizing Packet: The Student Organizing Packet is a workbook-like document for students who are interested in organizing and planning conscience-raising events on their campus. The workbook provides step-by-step guidelines for the planning process, including timelines, instructions for researching, gaining publicity (e.g. creation of flyers, press-releases) and for dealing with the crowds that may attend events. It also suggests types of events, such as hosting video and discussion nights (a resource guide for videos is provided at the end of the packet), teach-ins, hosting a speaker and performing guerilla theater pieces. The packet also provides information on how to deal with campus administrators in relation to event organizing. At the end of the document there are detailed templates and checklists for use by student organizers.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: criminal justice
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PROJECT CHANGE
Presidio Building, 1002B OReilly Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94129
415-561-4880 (tel)
Mission: Project Change's mission is to empower communities to reduce racial prejudice and improve race relations, to serve as a national clearinghouse for anti-racism information resources, and training, and to further the development of an infrastructure for social justice work.
Geographic Focus: National (with sites in Albuquerque, NM, El Paso, TX, Valdosta, GA and Knoxville, TN)
Resources/Publications:
Anti-Racism Resource Guide: Provides a selected group of programs, organizations, funders, and technical assistance providers that are particularly concerned with undoing racism. There is also a brief resource guide at the books end that lists not only relevant publications, but also well-received training programs, films and videos.
TYPE: --
LEVEL: --
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Project Change: A Community Builders Toolkit: 15 Tools for Creating Healthy, Productive Interracial/Multicultural Communities: A Primer for Revitalizing Democracy from the Ground Up: The Community Builders Toolkit contains 15 elements that this project came to consider to be their lessons learned after having completed a field study of 14 of the efforts identified as promising practices by President Bill Clintons Initiative on Race. As the authors of the toolkit note, ...these are the minimum essential elements of effective community building. Deal with these matters, cover these bases...and you are most likely to develop a solid, healthy, sustainable community-building program. The following are the 15 elements identified by the project:
1. Plan with people, not for them.
2. Goals will help you see the big picture.
3. Strategies will help yo get from here to there.
4. Leadership is about selecting the ones to follow.
5. Governance is about authority, power, representation and equity.
6. Up-front anti-racism/Come to grips with racism.
7. Draw strength from multicultural identities.
8. Bridge language barriers.
9. Money matters.
10. Action and analysis go together.
11. Stay grounded in the community.
12. Work hard to build constructive partnerships.
13. Cultivate the media.
14. Keep the motor running [the importance of assessment]
15. Be committed to the long haul.
The Toolkit then goes on to provide further detail on each of the 15 tools. In some instances notes or examples from the field study are provided. The booklet ends with three brief appendices: a glossary, a checklist for a healthy, productive community-based program) and a short list of resources for further action.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual, institutional
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Project Change: Planning an Anti-Racism Initiative: Planning an Anti-Racism Initiative is a report on Project Changethe Levi-Strauss Foundation sponsored initiativeas well as a guide for other groups engaged in a corporate foundation-sponsored, community-driven, anti-racism initiative. While brief, this document provides important information on the planning phase that was undertaken by Project Change, a section on What Communities Should Know, on What Sponsors Should Know, as well as a section on Emerging Issues and Challenges. There are also sections on the particularities of participation issues and the provision of technical assistance and training for local anti-racism groups.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: individual, institutional
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
Project Change: Knoxville, Tennessee: Opportunities for Racial Unity in the 21st Century. A third important document from Project Change, is a profile of Knoxville, TN, one of the Project Change sites. It is an example of the kind of view of itself that any community would seemingly benefit from having were they to embark upon an anti-racism initiative. Demographic information is presented in easy to read graphs. There is a historical overview of Knoxville accompanied by period photographs (the only time I came across use of photos) along with current statistics on homeownership and unemployment, for example, as well as an assessment of the current racial climate.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: community, institutional
DOMAIN: general anti-racism
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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION POLICY PROJECT (STTP)
www.transact.org
Mission: The goal of The Surface Transportation Policy Project is to ensure that transportation policy and investments help conserve energy, protect environmental and aesthetic quality, strengthen the economy, promote social equity, and make communities more livable. We emphasize the needs of people, rather than vehicles, in assuring access to jobs, services, and recreational opportunities. (from their
Resources/Publications:
Translating Media Attention into New Money for Alternatives: A compilation of remarks from key informants in transportation reform on strategies for focusing media attention on transportation issues in a way that has significant likelihood for changing funding and policy configurations. Examples include hiring a full-time media person, creating events for media to cover, careful timing of press events and creating compelling coalitions that will attract media attention.
TYPE: strategic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism (transportation)
Broadening Coalitions in Order to Win: A compilation of remarks/pointers by advocates of transportation reform on the formation of strategic coalitions. These informants recommend that coalitions be diverse, that communications be consistently clear, coalition goals be realistic and that the coalition develop a clear-cut but flexible strategy.
TYPE: educational
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism (transportation)
Image Mapping as a Tool to Guide Transportation & Community Planning: This tool presents the idea of graphically presenting individuals perceptions of place in order to provide insight into how people view their environments. The tool suggests that understanding peoples perceptions enables planners and coalition members to better tailor their plans to peoples needs.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: spatial
DOMAIN: regionalism (transportation)
Directory of Transportation Reform Resources
TYPE: --
LEVEL: --
DOMAIN: regionalism (transportation)
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URBAN HABITAT PROGRAM
PO Box 29908, Presidio Station
San Francisco, CA 94129-9908
415-561-3333
415-561-3334
Mission: Urban Habitat Program is dedicated to building a multicultural majority that provides urban environmental leadership in order to create socially just, ecologically sustainable communities in the Bay Area. Building on the Bay Area's progressive and environmental traditions, we and our allies are modeling community led, democratic land use and public investment planning, necessary for true urban revitalization that benefits our communities and protects the region's ecological diversity. This strategy transcends old oppositional politics to create a pro-active collective vision for the region. UHP fosters and supports initiatives for social and ecological justice taken by historically disenfranchised communities - African, Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native Americans, working and poor people.
Geographic Focus: Bay Area, California
Resources/Publications:
Community Equity Impact Assessment: A tool for identifying potential social and economic effects of land use, transportation policies, programs and projects, esp. on low-income populations. The tool provides particular questions that can be asked by advocates. The main issue areas examined by the tool are housing, employment, transportation, environment and health as well regional revitalization. There is also a checklist for identifying policies and programs that could have detrimental effects on already distressed communities.
TYPE: analytic
LEVEL: institutional, spatial, structural
DOMAIN: regionalism, anti-racism
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WESTERN STATES CENTER
P.O. Box 40305
Portland, OR 97240
Phone: (503) 228-8866
Fax: (503) 228-1965
E-mail (Executive Director Dan Petegorsky): danp@wscpdx.org
Mission: Western States Center is an advocate for social, economic, racial, and environmental justice in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Nevanda, and Alaska.
Resources/Publications:
Dismantling Racism - Tools and Resources: Publications on lessons learned from Center's anti-racism work, the distinction between diversity training and anti racist education, assessment of organizational racism, and anti-racist curricula. The Tools and Resources pages also lists documentaries on race and racism.
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TYPE: educational
LEVEL: institutional
DOMAIN: regionalism, anti-racism
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