Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy

Please join us on Thursday, December 12 for part two of our virtual series of expert-led debriefs on the significance of the November 2024 election outcomes for progressive community power building in California and beyond. Featuring leading progressive activists, these gatherings are co-hosted by the Institute and the Excessive Wealth Disorder Institute as part of the California Explorations Project. Speakers include: ✔️ Rep.-Elect Lateefah Simon (D-CA), Oakland, California ✔️ G. Cristina Mora, Co-Director, Institute of Governmental Studies, UC Berkeley ✔️ Shane Murphy Goldsmith, President & CEO, Liberty Hill Foundation ✔️ Henry A.J. Ramos, Senior Fellow, Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy ✔️ Gabriela Sandoval, Executive Director, Excessive Wealth Disorder Institute Learn more and RSVP: https://bit.ly/4fF51Zs

This time last year I was heading to NYC to attend In Common: Romare Bearden and New Approaches to Art, Race & Economy at The New School. I reconnected with Diedra Harris-Kelley and met fabulous people from the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy, like Henry A. J. Ramos, Darrick Hamilton and Gary Cunningham. The symposium was great, and two amazing things for me were born from there. I was fortunate to work with Henry at the Institute to write an article, Bearden and His Continuing Influence on Art, Society, and Economy, and participated in an interview. They and many other articles and interviews are available now. https://lnkd.in/gG_YFhQf You may remember, The Conversation: Inspired teaching, connections, and community, was an exhibition in July 2024. Romare Bearden’s artwork exhibited in our small town with work by my students and I. Now you can see photos and more at herARTS in Action’s website. https://lnkd.in/gRMswnJe As an artist with Bearden’s as her muse, this last year has been truly AMAZING!!

Our 2023 exhibition and symposium, "In Common: Romare Bearden and New Approaches to Art, Race & Economy," brought together leading contemporary artists, musicians, authors, scholars, and social activists to investigate the life and impact of American artist Romare Bearden (1911-1988) and the role of art and artists in advancing racial and economic justice. We invite you to explore our newly launched #InCommon Archive, bringing together symposium session videos, gallery photos, and exhibition catalogue essays, along with new thought pieces, a resource and reading list, post-event interviews with scholars and artists, and more. Explore the Archive: https://lnkd.in/geNn3DjH

"You have to invest in things that will create thriving communities. Because thriving communities are safe communities.” New from our #BudgetEquity Project, learn how the Big Easy Budget Coalition, a collective of over 40 organizations, is driving equitable investments in New Orleans to address the root causes of violence, including systemic disinvestment, poverty, lack of economic opportunity, and isolation. Read the case study: https://lnkd.in/gCxUpmUy Explore more examples of equitable ARPA investments nationwide: https://lnkd.in/gDk2bGnm

Honored to write a new piece for the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy which highlights how mental health is a beneficiary of efforts to build family savings. In it we cite a paper published this month on Financial Assets and Mental Health Over Time in Scientific Reports that found that having higher savings was associated with better mental health, above and beyond income and debt. Thank you to coauthors Ben Thornburg, Salma Abdalla, Mark Meiselbach and Sandro Galea, with gratitude to de Beaumont Foundation and Johns Hopkins BSPH Department of Health Policy and Management for support of the CLIMB study. I am eager to see how our research can help inform policy interventions.

“Was it really possible that we could implement legislation that didn’t simply tweak bank policies or give people more money day to day, but actually begin to change one of the deepest structural causes of health inequity, impacting people of color most?” New on our #BabyBlogs, Annie Harper of the Yale School of Medicine discusses how #BabyBonds offer a crucial first step toward addressing the upstream causes of health problems. Read: https://bit.ly/3ZgJdNW

Americans deserve to be able to plan, save, and invest in their futures. A new report developed by the Urban Institute and commissioned by the National True Cost of Living Coalition unveils that more than half of all people in the United States–52 percent–are financially insecure. The report outlines the new True Cost of Economic Security methodology that will provide policymakers a clearer, more accurate picture of what it means for Americans to achieve economic security. The Institute is a member of the National True Cost of Living Coalition and Founding Director Darrick Hamilton serves on its Steering Committee. Read the report: https://lnkd.in/e3epxGau

Among the topline findings from the Urban Institute’s report: - 52 percent of Americans live below the True Cost of Economic Security (TCES) line. - Low resources rather than high costs characterize the places with the highest TCES rates. - 3 out of 5 children live in families with resources falling below the TCES line, as compared with 49 percent of adults ages 18 to 64 and 47 percent of adults ages 65 and older. - The majority of people in single-parent families fall below the TCES line, and half of all people living with two adults (under age 65) and two children, lack the resources to cover their costs. Learn more about how we are measuring what matters: https://lnkd.in/epfAyWQ6

“Was it really possible that we could implement legislation that didn’t simply tweak bank policies or give people more money day to day, but actually begin to change one of the deepest structural causes of health inequity, impacting people of color most?” —Annie Harper, PhD https://lnkd.in/ezevQDnp David Radcliffe Darrick Hamilton Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy

“Policies that improve access to assets, including Baby Bonds, can be an effective intervention to help families grow assets, accumulate wealth, and have improved mental health.” Catherine Ettman, PhD of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health discusses how wealth-building tools like #BabyBonds can improve not only financial security but mental health and well-being. Read on our #BabyBlogs: https://bit.ly/4hYS2mU