john a. powellExecutive Director of the Kirwan Institute for

the Study of Race & Ethnicity

Williams Chair in Civil Rights & Civil Liberties, Moritz College of Law

Seattle, Washington

December 10-11, 2010

Structural Racialization and Opportunity Systems and Structures Seattle’s Landscape of Opportunity LeadershipMaking Transformational Change

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Individual

Institutional

Structural Racialization

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“Much of what we call race is nonphenotypical.

All of what we call race is nonbiological. Race is a process.”

~john powell

It is a very different way of looking at race

The practices, cultural norms, and institutional arrangements that help create and maintain (disparate) racialized outcomes

Structures unevenly distribute benefits, burdens, and racialized meaning

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Ongoing Racial Inequalities

Outcomes: Racial Disparities

Racial inequalities in current levels of well-being

Capacity for individual and community improvement is undermined

Current Manifestations: Social and Institutional DynamicsProcesses that maintain racial

hierarchiesRacialized public policies and

institutional practices

Context: The Dominant Consensus on Race

White privilege National values Contemporary culture

Source: Adapted from the Aspen Roundtable on Community Change. “Structural Racism and Community Building.” June 2004

Traditional Understanding {-} Structural Understanding {+}

An independent-isolated-individual psychological issue

An outcome that results from interactivity of institutions & actors

De jure De facto

Static Dynamic

Past, if present an anomaly Present

Overt Overt and covert

Irrational Rational

Tautological Non-tautological (multidimensional)

Source: Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo (1997) 8

Our understanding has changed over time From single-dimensional understanding… One variable can explain why opportunity has

been restricted

…to multi-dimensional understanding Structural inequality Example: a bird in a cage—examining one

bar cannot explain why a bird cannot fly; but multiple bars, arranged in specific ways, reinforce each other and trap the bird

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…to an understanding of processes and relationships Understanding the

relationships among these multiple dimensions, and how these complex intra-actions change processes Relationships are

neither static nor discrete

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…Some people ride the “Up” escalator to reach opportunity

…Others have to run up the “Down” escalator to get there

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A series of mutually reinforcing federal policies across multiple domains have contributed to the disparities we see today School Desegregation

Suburbanization/ Homeownership

Urban Renewal

Public Housing

Transportation

Disparities in how federal government invested in people and in places….

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This historic exclusion is perpetuated through our institutions…

Source: Barbara Reskin. http://faculty.uwashington.edu/reskin/

We can define opportunity through access

Opportunity includes access to Education Healthcare Employment Services Healthy Food Housing

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In 1960, African American families in poverty were 3.8times more likely to be concentrated in high-poverty neighborhoods than poor Whites

In 2000, they were 7.3 times more likely

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Lower EducationalOutcomes

Increased Flight

of Affluent Families

Neighborhood Segregation

SchoolSegregation &Concentrated

Poverty

Structural racialization involves a series of exclusions, often anchored in (and perpetuating) spatial segregation

Historically marginalized people of color and the very poor have been spatially isolated from opportunity via reservations, Jim Crow, Appalachian mountains, ghettos, barrios, and the culture of incarceration

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Our world today is more complex and interconnected

Current and future changes will not only be driven by local/national issues, but influenced by systemic global trends and challenges Examples Globalization Climate change The credit and foreclosure crisis Growing diversity and widening inequality

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We must adjust our lens of analysis to reflect these changing conditions

Moving toward a systems approach of problem solving and identifying solutions

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Housing

Childcare Employment

Education

Health

Transportation

Effective Participation

An analysis of any one area will yield

an incompleteunderstanding

We must consider how institutions

interact with one another to produce racialized outcomes

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Discussions about regions are enhanced by thinking about opportunity both structurally and socially

We need to think about the ways in which the institutions that mediate opportunity are arranged—systems thinking The order of structures The timing of the

interaction between them The relationships that

exist between them

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Neighborhood Segregation

Health

School segregation

Educational achievement

Exposure to crime; arrest

Transportation limitations and other inequitable public services

Job segregation

Community power and individual assets

Racial stigma and other psychological issues

Source: Barbara Reskin, http://faculty.washington.edu/reskin

Where would you want to live?It’s more than just a matter of choice

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Homeownership Rate by Race/Ethnicity (2000)

Metro Area

Black 36.8%

Indian 44.9%

Asian/Pac. Islander 55.7%

Hispanic 36.2%

Non-Hispanic White 66.0%

High Interest Rate Loans as Share of Home Purchase Loans by Race/Ethnicity (2008)

Metro Area

Hispanic 8.4%

Non-Hispanic White 4.1%

Non-Hispanic Black 6.7%

Non-Hispanic AmericanIndian

5.3%

Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac.Islander

3.5%

High Interest Rate Loans as Share of Home Purchase Loans by Race/Ethnicity and Income (2008)

Low-Income

Middle-Income

Upper-Income

Hispanic 9.5% 10.7% 4.6%

Non-HispanicWhite

5.5% 4.0% 3.5%

Non-Hispanic Black

5.6% 6.6% 7.8%

Non-HispanicAmerican Indian

_ 3.2% 6.9%

Non-HispanicAsian/Pac. Islander

4.0% 2.9% 3.6%

Source: http://diversitydata.sph.harvard.edu/Data/Profiles/Show.aspx?loc=1276&notes=True&rgn=None&cat=-1

For the state of Washington 41,800 projected foreclosures for 2010 132,092 projected foreclosures for 2009-2012 $19.5 billion projected home equity wealth lost

due to nearby foreclosures 65% of foreclosures are concentrated in low and

very low opportunity neighborhoods

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Sources: Kirwan Institute. Geography of Opportunity: Mapping to Promote Equity Community Development and Fair Housing in King County, WA. April 2010. Center for Responsible Living, http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/tools-resources/factsheets/washington.html

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Poverty Rate of School Where Average Primary School Student Attends by Race/Ethnicity (2007-08)

Metro Area

Hispanic 50.2%

Non-Hispanic White 28.3%

Non-Hispanic Black 55.4%

Non-Hispanic AmericanIndian

44.6%

Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander

38.5%

The poverty of a school, more than the poverty of the individual, determines students’ educational outcomes

Source: Center for Responsible Living, http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/tools-resources/factsheets/washington.html

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Low Birthweight Births by Race/Ethnicity (2005-2006)

Metro Area

Hispanic 4.9%

Non-Hispanic American Indian 6.0%

Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander 6.2%

Non-Hispanic Black 8.5%

Non-Hispanic White 4.0%

Low birthweight babies are more likely to suffer from impaired physical and cognitive development and decreased health overall throughout childhood

Source: Center for Responsible Living, http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/tools-resources/factsheets/washington.html

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Poverty Rate by Race/Ethnicity (1999)

Metro Area

Black 19.0%

American Indian 20.0%

Asian/Pac. Islander 18.0%

Hispanic 6.0%

Non-Hispanic White 12.0%

Child Poverty Rate by Race/Ethnicity (1999)

Metro Area

Black 25%

American Indian 26%

Asian/Pac. Islander 14%

Hispanic 22%

Non-Hispanic White 7%

Increases in child poverty, homelessness, and temporary relief indicate that children across the U.S. are experiencing “a quiet disaster.” “We are seeing the

emergence of what amounts to a ‘recession generation.’”

Source: Bob Herbert, “Children in Peril.” New York Times Op-Ed published April 20, 2009. Herbert is quoting Dr. Irwin Redlener, president of the Children’s Health Fund in New York.

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Exposure to Neighborhood Poverty by Race/Ethnicity (1999)

Metro Area

Hispanic 11.0%

Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander 10.7%

Non-Hispanic Black 13.6%

Non-Hispanic White 7.8%

Children’s Exposure to Neighborhood Poverty by Race/Ethnicity (1999)

Metro Area

Hispanic 10.8%

Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander 10.3%

Non-Hispanic Black 13.5%

Non-Hispanic White 7.0%

Sources: Sampson, 2007Center for Responsible Living, http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/tools-resources/factsheets/washington.html

Living in a disadvantaged neighborhood is equivalent to missing a full year of school, and these effects continue on even after a family has moved

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Transformative thinking to combat structural racialization

We need to find new approaches Personal and social responsibility are

important—we should maintain them in our advocacy and analysis

Approaches should consider the structures that are creating and perpetuating these disparities and work to reform them for lasting change

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Structural Racialization Policy is important,

but only one piece of the puzzle

Understanding relationships between institutions, not just within one organization, is critical

37Source: Leadership for a New Era

Shift in thinking from leadership as the influence an individual exerts over others by virtue of skills/position to understanding leadership as a dynamic process exercised within groups

38Source: Leadership for a New Era

Types of Leadership

Laissez Faire Leadership

Autocratic Leadership

Participative Leadership

Emergent Leadership

Transactional Leadership

Transformational Leadership

39Source: http://www.legacee.com

Laissez faire leadership Hands off view that tends to minimize the

amount of direction and face time required Works well if you have highly trained and highly

motivated direct reports

Autocratic leadership Falling out of favor in many countries This style is popular with today’s CEOs who have

much in common with feudal lords in Medieval Europe

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Participative leadership Addresses difficulties in demanding someone to

be creative, perform as a team, solve complex problems, improve quality, and provide outstanding customer service

Presents a happy medium between over controlling (micromanaging) and not being engaged

Tends to be seen in organizations that must innovate to prosper

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Emergent leadership Contrary to the belief of many, groups do not

automatically accept a new “boss” as leader A number of ineffective managers do not know the

behaviors to use when taking over a new group

Transactional leadership Emphasizes work within the umbrella of the status

quo; almost in opposition to the goals of transformational leadership

Considered to be a “by the book” approach in which a person works within the rules

Commonly seen in large, bureaucratic organizations

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Transformational leadership Transformational leaders have been written

about for thousands of years—praised and cursed Implement new ideas Continually change themselves Flexible and adaptable Improve those around them

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From slavery to the age of Obama

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Charismatic, religious, spiritual leaders and activists

Modern political leaders who influence policy directly but also are more symbolic

Black politics and leadership has “transformed itself in response to the dominant society in at least eight distinct sociopolitical regimes throughout American history” Black Slavery, Black Freedom, and White Supremacy (1619-

1865) Emancipation, Reconstruction, and Nullification (1866-1883) The Nadir: Terror, Lynching, and the Reimposition of White

Supremacy (1884-1914) The Struggle for Black Leadership (1915-1944) The Struggle for Civil Right or Racial Integration (1945-1965) The Rise and Fall of Black Power (1966-1976) The Golden Age of Integration (1970-1980) The Disappearance of Black Leadership and the Emergence of

Symbolic Politics (1980-present)

45Source: Kelley, Norman. 2004. The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics.

For the past 100 years, Black politics had been geared toward ending de jure and de facto segregation and challenging White supremacy

The Million Man March represented a shift away from results oriented politics to symbolic politics

46Source: Kelly, Norman. 2004. The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics.

Emerging Black leaders Came of age after Jim Crow segregation and the

Civil Rights Movement Were raised in integrated neighborhoods and

educated in majority White institutions Are more likely to embrace deracialized

campaign and governance strategies Will have a wholly different relationship with

White culture

47Source: Gillespie, Andra. 2009. Whose Black Politics? Cases in Post-Racial Black Leadership

Tensions within own community/group vs. outside his/her own community/group

Not distance the community from others but link to other communities

Resist the trap of focusing particularly and wholly on one community

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Universal Programs

Targeted Programs

Targeted Universalism

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This approach supports the needs of the particular while reminding us that we are all part of the same social fabric Universal, yet captures how people are differently situated Inclusive, yet targets those who are most marginalized

Example goal: Every school as a performing school What does each school need to get there? What does each student, family, teacher, community

need? What are their strengths and constraints?

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Targeted Universalism recognizes racial disparities and the importance of eradicating them, while acknowledging their presence within a larger inequitable, institutional framework

Targeted universalism is a common framework through which to pursue justice A model which recognizes our linked fate A model where we all grow together A model where we embrace collective solutions

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“All residents have access to opportunities for meeting basic needs and advancing their health and well-being: good jobs, transportation choices, safe and stable housing, a good education, quality health care, a range of parks and natural areas, vibrant public spaces, and healthful food.The benefits and burdens of growth and change are fairly shared among our communities…All residents and communities are fully involved as equal partners in public decision-making.”

Source: Coalition for a Livable Future. Regional Equity Atlas Project. 2007.

Who’s measuring this? Who’s

accountable?

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Keep grounded to your community/group

But also serve as a bridge for your community/group to other communities/groups

Leaders must be collaborators and connectors Willingness to network with other movements Ability to bring divergent actors together Commitment for the long haul Have a wide vision for sustainable advocacy/work

Leaders can change how we talk about race Should not focus solely on disparities The disparity model is limiting when talking about the

racialization of poverty Stress of poor White middle class Fear of (White) middle class that welfare programs

might be disadvantageous for them (that feeling of “what about us?”)

55Source: Program for Environmental and Regional Equity

Start from the assumption that an awareness of racial disparities is fundamental to fostering race-conscious approaches to social justice policy When disparities are seen as absent, trivial, or

declining, support for color-conscious policies will wane

Increasing awareness of racial disparities may not be sufficient to change attitudes

It is also necessary to foster the proper explanations for racial disparities

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Counter the perception that social justice programs that take race into account are somehow inconsistent with treasured American ideals such as egalitarianism and meritocracy

Tell a story with everyone in it Talk about values

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Ten Things That Could Be Done To Revitalize Black Politics

1. Recognize Black politics has regressed and has been demobilized; greater organizational and institutional effort has to be emphasized rather than symbolic posturing

2. Develop an agenda driven, grassroots, voter mobilization politics

3. Develop an urban agenda as well as a rural agenda for rural-based Blacks

4. Develop a national caucus-based politics in localities that demands new ideas, methods, and actions from local and national Black political leaders and intellectuals that is based on accountability, communication, and transparency

58Source: Kelley, Norman. 2004. The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics.

5. Develop Black think tanks that will look critically at problems and issues affecting Blacks and create plans and policies to assist organizations that are addressing issues and problems

6. Black economic development should be based on a new institutionalism that is a blend of private capital, community-owned, cooperatively run, and state supported enterprises

7. Develop an effective public affairs infrastructure that critically looks at issues in the realm of politics, culture, economics, and gender relations

59Source: Kelley, Norman. 2004. The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics.

8. Encourage women to seek a larger leadership role in Black politics since they are often the primary caregivers and are affected by public/private policy decisions regarding work, education, taxation, etc.

9. The Black church needs to become more actively engaged in attending to its congregation’s and Black America’s temporal needs

10. Rather than concentrating on reparations, lawyers, historians, economists, and activists should scrutinize the relationship between Blacks and the music industry which has often been rank with exploitation (Blacks have developed various genres of music yet have no significant control over the industry)

60Source: Kelley, Norman. 2004. The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics.

Institutions can enhance engagement Not just “outreach”. That is, anchor institutions cannot

simply make their offer and “sell” the community hoping they will buy it. Anchor institutions must engage with the community to shape the offer itself, especially marginalized communities of color

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Connect with leaders from other communities to learn from each other and open a constructive dialogue between leadership of different communities

Have knowledge of what is happening in other communities; this can inform work in one’s own community

Recognize the importance of collaborative discourse

62Source: Walters, Ronald W.; Robert Charles Smith. African American Leadership

Build coalitions across racial groups and interests Multi-issue and multi-constituency Take up issues, but do not be defined by them Be motivated by the unequal balance of power

between the financial elite and everyone else

63Source: Program for Environmental and Regional Equity

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“The Four Amigos”Roberto Maestas, Bernie Whitebear, Larry Gossett, Bob Santos—“Four men of different races and ethnicities who shared a common civil rights agenda”

“‘All the issues—equality, employment, education and housing—with each individual group having those kinds of problems that was sort of the glue keeping us together,’ Santos says.”

“‘When we had black, brown and red joining us we would see the dramatic attitudes that powerful officials would have. University presidents, and whomever, this is a different ballgame,’ Maestas

Source: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kplu/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1577092/KPLU.Local.News/Honoring.Seattle%27s.Four.Amigos

Collective and deliberate action Horizontal collaborations: regional collaborations,

public/private/nonprofit partnerships Vertical collaborations: local, state, and federal

policy reforms

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A systems response Where are your key

leverage points? What are the critical

intervention points? Equity focused

Creating a community for all

Emphasis on strategic collaboration Across multiple domains

Opening pathways to opportunity through engagement People, places, linkages

Source: “Pathways to Opportunity: Partnership and Collaboration for Revitalizing the Rosemont-Walbrook Neighborhood” available at www.kirwaninstitute.org

Monitoring and evaluations Do proposed projects: Perpetuate residential

segregation? Exacerbate jobs-mismatch? Perpetuate environmental

injustice?

Without addressing the social, racial, and interregional inequities facing the region, our future is compromised

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Accountability at Both Ends Organizations and officials must be held

accountable, but what about the community?

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Everyone should have fair access to the critical opportunity structures needed to succeed in life

Communities are linked to a larger system

Affirmatively connecting people to opportunity creates positive, transformative change in communities

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Transformative change requires substantive efforts in three areas

Talking about race: Understanding how language and messages shape reality and the perception

of reality

Thinking about race: Understanding how framing and priming impact information processing in

both the explicit and the implicit mind

Linking these understandings to the way we act on race and how we arrange our institutions

and policies

History has left its mark, but we can and must intervene in segregated and inequitable landscapes to achieve a more promising future for all. Systems and structures can be changed.

To do this, we need to unmask how we got here—what policies, processes, assumptions historically shaped our experiences and opportunities? Where should we intervene, what resources can be leveraged?

Then, we need to challenge those policies, processes, assumptions and develop new ones with equity as the overarching outcome These need to be developed in socially and racially inclusive,

collaborative ways

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Our fates are linked, yet our fates have been socially constructed as disconnected, especially through the categories of race, class, gender,

nationality, religion…

We need to consider ourselves connected to—instead of isolated from—“thy neighbor”

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www.race-talk.org

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