Equity Makes Richmond Stronger
Building Stronger Communities and Racial Equity
Richmond Memorial Health Foundation
March 21, 2017
Glenn Harris, President
Racial inequity in the U.S.
Rapidly changing demographics
250,000,000
Population
200,000,000
People of Color
White
150,000,000
100,000,000
50,000,000
0
2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Family
Tuskegee
1) Think of a number between 1 and 10
2) Multiply that number times 9
3) If it is a two digit number add them
together (for example 32 would be 3+2=5)
4) Subtract 5
5) Convert to a letter (a is 1, b is 2, etc.)
6) Country starts with that letter.
7) Animal that starts with that letter.
8) Fruit that starts with that letter.
Center for Social Inclusion
CSI catalyzes communities,
government, and other institutions
to dismantle structural racial
inequity and create equitable
outcomes for all.
We craft and apply strategies and
tools to transform our nation’s
policies and practices, in order to
achieve racial equity.
Policy
Development
Institutional
Change
Communications
Narrative
Field
Building
Government Alliance on Race and Equity
A national network of government working to
achieve racial equity and advance opportunities
for all.
 Lead network – 20 members
 Expand network – 30 states / 100 cities
 Provide tools to put theory into action
Government Alliance for Race and Equity
Washington
Seattle
Tacoma
Oregon
Portland
Multnomah County
Minnesota
Iowa
Metropolitan Council
Minneapolis
Minneapolis Park Board
St. Paul
Dubuque
Iowa City
Wisconsin
Dane County
Madison
Michigan
Ottawa County
Massachusetts
Boston
California
Alameda County
Virginia
Fairfax County
= Active GARE Members
= Current GARE Engagements
= Racial Equity Here Participants
National best practice
Normalize
• A shared analysis
and definitions
• Urgency / prioritize
Visualize
Operationalize
Organize
• Racial equity tools
• Data to develop
strategies and drive
results
• Internal
infrastructure
• Partnerships
Normalize
90%
90%
Equity? Equality?
What’s the difference?
Racial equity
Racial equity is when 1) race no longer is a determinant
of life outcomes and 2) in addressing racial inequity
directly, we improve outcomes for everyone, including
White people
Racial equity is both our process and the outcome we
seek to achieve. It is an inclusive approach to transform
structures towards access, justice, self-determination,
redistribution, and sharing of power and resources.
How we think
Humans need meaning.
• Individual meaning
• Collective meaning
Only 2% of emotional cognition is available consciously
Racial bias tends to reside in the unconscious network
What color are the following lines of text?
Blue
Red
Green
Black
Green
Red
Blue
Black
Black
Blue
Green
Red
Green
Green
Black
Blue
(The Stroop Test)
Explicit bias
Implicit bias
Expressed directly
Expressed indirectly
Aware of bias / operates
consciously
Unaware of bias / operates
sub-consciously
Example – Sign in the
window of an apartment
building – “we don’t rent to
_____”
Example – a property
manager doing more
criminal background checks
on African Americans than
whites.
Examples of implicit bias
When conductors were placed behind a screen,
the percentage of female new hires for
orchestral jobs increased 25% – 46%.
Addressing bias
• Suppressing or denying bias can increase bias.
• Research has confirmed that instead of repressing
one’s bias, if one openly acknowledges one’s
biases, and directly challenges or refutes them,
one can overcome them.
Individual racism:
Pre-judgment, bias, or discrimination by
an individual based on race.
Institutional racism:
individua
l
Policies, practices and procedures that
work better for white people than for
people of color, often unintentionally.
institution
Structural racism:
A history and current reality of institutional
racism across all institutions. This
combines to create a system that
negatively impacts communities of color.
structural
Organize
Equity infrastructure
Racial Equity Leadership Team – senior leadership
 Accountability
agreements
 Departmental
work plans
 Performance
reviews
Housing
Transit
Police
Parks
Courts
 Racial Equity Tools
Core Team
leadership development and capacity building
Interdepartmental Teams
contracting equity, workforce equity, community engagement
 Institution-wide
work plans
Employee Survey 2012
“Examine impact of race at work”
“Actively promoting RSJI changes”
“Dept and City making progress”
RSJI Community Survey 2012
“Racial equity government priority”
“Progress on racial equity”
“Schools are good or very good”
Operationalize
Race in governmental policies
Federal Housing
Administration
Location of city facilities
Streetlighting
What is a Racial Equity Tool?
Process
Product
Actively inserts
racial equity into
decision making
processes
What is a Racial Equity Tool process?
1
2
3
4
5
6
• Desired results
• Analysis of data
• Community engagement
• Strategies for racial equity
• Implementation plan
• Communications and accountability
Who should use a Racial Equity Tool?
Elected officials
Government staff
Community
Creating change
When we find solutions that
work for those most vulnerable
in our communities, we find
solutions that work better for
everyone.
Stay in touch
Glenn Harris, President
Center for Social Inclusion
[email protected]
Twitter: @glennharriscsi
www.centerforsocialinclusion.org
www.twitter.com/theCSI
www.facebook.com/centerforsocialinclusion