Click here to download the accompanying slides

A lot of people these days talk about a racial calculus. But a real settling of accounts requires a willingness to shake up the status quo. Both NPQ—in partnership with Prosperity Now—and Refuge Strength every multi-part series of articles published on how to close the racial wealth gap. Here, we’ve brought in writers from both series to answer the question: what should be done?

In this in-depth 90-minute webinar, co-hosted by NPQ and Refuge Strengthfour leaders on the ground discuss central issues around economic justice, racial justice and strategic approaches to closing the wealth gap.

Our panelists are:

Gary Cunningham, CEO of Prosperity Now, a national racial and economic justice nonprofit headquartered in Washington, DC Prosperity Now is committed to transforming our economy to benefit all.

Jeremy Greer, co-founder and co-executive director of Liberation in a Generation, an organization incubated by PolicyLink that empowers people of color to totally transform the economy.

jean a. Powell, director of the Othering & Belonging Institute and professor of law, African-American and ethnic studies at the University of California at Berkeley.

Anne Price, president of the Insight Center for Community Economic Development, which works to shift power and agency in economic policy by centering those closest to the problems in shaping solutions.

This webinar explores:

• What are the main conventional approaches to closing the racial wealth gap? Why do they fail?
• In what ways does wealth continue to be extracted from communities of color, further deepening the racial wealth divide?
• What is the impact of rising student and medical debt on the racial wealth gap?
• How does the tax system affect the racial wealth gap?
• What is “targeted universalism”? How does it build on and differ from an equity-based approach?
• What would a “targeted universalist” approach to closing the racial wealth gap look like?
• Does Closing the Homeownership Gap Reduce the Racial Wealth Gap? Why or why not?
• What are we learning on the ground – from community development leaders and others – about how to create wealth in low-income and BIPOC communities?
• What is the role of reparations in closing the racial wealth gap and laying the foundation for a fairer economy?

Articles presented in the webinar

Gary Cunningham, “Bridging the Racial Wealth Divide: A Call for Strategic Thinking”, NPQJanuary 12, 2022.

Jeremie Greer, “Wealth Creation Won’t Work While Wealth Extraction Goes On,” shelterforce, February 14, 2022.

jean a. Powell, “Beyond Equity: Targeted Universalism and Closing the Racial Wealth Gap”, NPQ, January 19, 2022.

Anne Price, “Doing ‘the Right Thing’ Won’t Solve the Racial Wealth Gap,” Refuge StrengthFebruary 8, 2022.

Additional Resources

Gary Cunningham, “Strengthening Our Identity: Rethinking the Path to Black Liberation”, NPQJanuary 21, 2021.

Natasha Hicks, Fenaba Addo and Anne Price, and William Darity, Jr., Always climbing the escalator down: How narratives shape our understanding of racial wealth inequalityOakland, CA and Durham, NC: Insight Center for Community Economic Development and Samuel Dubois Center on Social Equity, September 14, 2021.

Michael McAfee, “Toward Liberation: An Interview with Jeremie Greer on the Racial Equity Governance Agenda,” Oakland, CA: Policy Link, February 2, 2021.

Institute of Otherness and Belonging, Animated explainer video seriesBerkeley, CA: OBI, August 12, 2021.

jean a. Powell, “Bridge or Rupture? The stories we tell will create the future we inhabit,” Non-profit quarterly, winter 2019, p. 36-39.

Anne Price, Don’t fixate on the racial wealth gapOakland, CA and New York, NY: Insight Center for Community Economic Development and the Roosevelt Institute, February 2020.

Series Links

NPQ-Prosperity Now Series, The Promise of Focused Universalism: Community Leaders RespondJanuary 12-March 2, 2022.

shelterforce series, The Racial Wealth Gap – Moving to Systemic SolutionsFebruary 7-April 4, 2022.