Juneteenth

Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery. It’s been 158 years since June 19, 1865, but Black people still aren’t free. Black people are still demanding equal rights, equal treatment, and full access to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Whether it's coronavirus, the racial wealth gap, or the killing of Black people at the hands of law enforcement, the call to action on this Juneteenth must be focused on structural reform. This pandemic has not only highlighted structural problems in our health care and economic systems, it has exacerbated racial and ethnic disparities that have long been pushed aside. The recent killings of Black people has done the same—further showcasing the need to focus on the criminal justice system as a whole instead of focusing on bad apples. To effectively remove systematic racism, we must be unafraid to change our country’s economic, social, and civic intuitions. The following products highlight some of our work focused on these issues and on structural reform.

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The Executive Order on Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices to Enhance Public Trust and Public Safety Is a Foundation to Build Upon Article
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to Gianna Floyd, the daughter of George Floyd, after an executive order signing event enacting further police reform.

The Executive Order on Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices to Enhance Public Trust and Public Safety Is a Foundation to Build Upon

Two years after the murder of George Floyd, the Biden administration released a police reform executive order containing policies that states and cities should build upon.

Rachael Eisenberg, Nicole Lee Ndumele, Kate Kahan, 1 More Udi Ofer

5 Facts About Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Article
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

5 Facts About Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s exemplary background reflects the Biden administration’s commitment to nominating exceptional judges at every level.

Stephanie Wylie, Genna Cifelli

How To Make Policies Work for Black Women With Disabilities Article
Transit riders, elected officials, and advocates, including Access-a-Ride organizer Eman Rimawi, rally outside Cuomo's office

How To Make Policies Work for Black Women With Disabilities

To create more equitable systems, policymakers must take an intersectional approach that includes Black women and girls with disabilities.

Megan Buckles

Black LGBTQ Individuals Experience Heightened Levels of Discrimination Article
People holding signs supporting Black transgender people gather during a candlelight vigil in West Reading, Pennsylvania, on September 14, 2020. (Getty/Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle)

Black LGBTQ Individuals Experience Heightened Levels of Discrimination

The compounding effects of discrimination for Black LGBTQ Americans are evident in the workplace, health care systems, and police interactions, leading to gaps in economic advancement and mental and physical health outcomes.

Lindsay Mahowald

A Criminal Record Shouldn’t Be a Life Sentence to Poverty Report
 (Close-up reflection of a white sign with red and black text in a window reading

A Criminal Record Shouldn’t Be a Life Sentence to Poverty

Bipartisan momentum for clean slate and fair chance licensing policies—which remove barriers to economic opportunity for people facing the stigma of a criminal record—has grown significantly in the states in recent years.

Rebecca Vallas, Sharon Dietrich, Beth Avery

5 Discussions That Shaped the Justice Reform Movement in 2020 Article
A protester wearing a Black Lives Matter T-shirt stands at a memorial event in Jefferson Square Park in Louisville, Kentucky, on March 13, 2021, to mark the one-year anniversary of Breonna Taylor's death. (Getty/Jeremy Hogan)

5 Discussions That Shaped the Justice Reform Movement in 2020

While more must be done to shrink the footprint of the U.S. criminal justice system, the national dialogue around reform during summer 2020 has inspired transformative ideas and tangible policies that can be built on moving forward.

Kenny Lo, Sarah Figgatt, Betsy Pearl, 1 More Chelsea Parsons

Let Black Soldiers Know The Military ‘Gets It’: Rename Bases Named After Confederate Generals In the News

Let Black Soldiers Know The Military ‘Gets It’: Rename Bases Named After Confederate Generals

As protesters and lawmakers act to remove Confederate monuments and statues from public spaces across the country, Frank Kendall argues that it is also time for the military to rename U.S. bases named for Confederate generals as a necessary first step toward addressing systemic racism.

Forbes

Frank Kendall

On the Persistence of the Black-White Unemployment Gap Report
A man fills out an application at a job fair in Chicago on June 12, 2014. (Getty/Scott Olson)

On the Persistence of the Black-White Unemployment Gap

The United States needs policies that challenge structural racism in order to close the persistent unemployment gap between African Americans and whites.

Olugbenga Ajilore

The Continued Student Loan Crisis for Black Borrowers Report
COLLEGE PARK, MD - MAY 17:  Graduates of Bowie State University arrive for the school's graduation ceremony at the Comcast Center on the campus of the University of Maryland May 17, 2013 in College Park, Maryland. First lady Michelle Obama delivered the commencement speech for the 600 graduates of Maryland's oldest historically black university and one of the ten oldest in the country.  (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Continued Student Loan Crisis for Black Borrowers

New federal data shows high default rates for newer borrowers despite increased use of income-driven repayment plans.

Ben Miller

Systemic Inequality: Displacement, Exclusion, and Segregation Report
Typical row home facades on a residential street off Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia on November 9, 2017. (Typical row home facades on a residential street off Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia on November 9, 2017.)

Systemic Inequality: Displacement, Exclusion, and Segregation

The United States must reckon with the racism built into its housing system in order to ensure that all Americans have the opportunity to build wealth.

Danyelle Solomon, Connor Maxwell, Abril Castro

Truth and Reconciliation Report
Civil rights advocates carry placards during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, in Washington, D.C. (Getty/Universal History Archive/Warren K. Leffler)

Truth and Reconciliation

In order to address centuries of collective harm to African Americans, the United States must acknowledge the impacts of slavery and make an intentional choice to rebuild itself in an equitable manner.

Danyelle Solomon

Progressive Governance Can Turn the Tide for Black Farmers Report
A crop farmer and recipient of USDA farm subsidies works to prepare equipment for evening planting of corn in Hull, Sioux County, Iowa, April 2011. (Getty/Melina Mara)

Progressive Governance Can Turn the Tide for Black Farmers

Inclusive progressive solutions are key to addressing the structural racism of previous U.S. farm policies—something that nearly wiped out black farmers.

Abril Castro, Caius Z. Willingham

The Madness Doesn’t End in March Report
DURHAM, NC - FEBRUARY 20: Cam Reddish #2, Marques Bolden #20, Tre Jones #3, Zion Williamson #1 and RJ Barrett #5 of the Duke Blue Devils huddle against the North Carolina Tar Heels in the first half at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 20, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)

The Madness Doesn’t End in March

Big-time college sports distort the reality of black male students’ experience on college campuses, so much so that black male athletes represent a sizable chunk of black men in Power Five schools.

Sara Garcia, Connor Maxwell

Women of Color Will Lose the Most if Roe v. Wade Is Overturned Article
Local politicians, activists, and others participate in a protest to denounce President Donald Trump's selection of Brett Kavanaugh as his nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, July 10, 2018, in New York City. (Getty/Spencer Platt)

Women of Color Will Lose the Most if Roe v. Wade Is Overturned

If President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee is appointed and overturns Roe v. Wade, the challenges women of color face when trying to access health care will be even greater.

Jamila Taylor

Valuing Black Women’s Work Article
A woman completes rounds of assessments during the fourth and final day of a weeklong job training program at a college in Omaha, Nebraska, May 2018. (Getty/The Washington Post/Jahi Chikwendiu)

Valuing Black Women’s Work

Persistent pay disparities demand intentional, concrete policy solutions to combat bias and systemic barriers in order to expand opportunities for black women.

Jocelyn Frye

Mass Incarceration, Stress, and Black Infant Mortality Report

Mass Incarceration, Stress, and Black Infant Mortality

The system of mass incarceration is perhaps the clearest manifestation of structural racism in the United States—with particularly damaging effects for black women and infants.

Connor Maxwell, Danyelle Solomon

Maternal Mortality and the Devaluation of Black Motherhood Article
A mom of two elementary school children living in Greensboro, North Carolina, October 2016. (Getty/Jerry Wolford)

Maternal Mortality and the Devaluation of Black Motherhood

Both black mothers and women have long been devalued in American society, and racism must be acknowledged and confronted in the effort to reduce black maternal mortality.

Jamila Taylor

America’s Sordid Legacy on Race and Disaster Recovery Article
A mother holds her baby as her husband works to reconstruct their home destroyed by Hurricane Maria in San Isidro, Puerto Rico, on December 23, 2017. (Mario Tama/Getty)

America’s Sordid Legacy on Race and Disaster Recovery

The United States has a failing record on responsiveness to communities of color following natural disasters—a record that has only worsened under the Trump administration.

Connor Maxwell

Systematic Inequality Report

Systematic Inequality

The already large racial wealth gap between white and black American households grew even wider after the Great Recession. Targeted policies are necessary to reverse this deepening divide.

Angela Hanks, Danyelle Solomon, Christian E. Weller

Suppression: A Common Thread in American Democracy Article
A statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee is removed from Lee Circle Friday, May 2017. (AP/Scott Threlkeld)

Suppression: A Common Thread in American Democracy

Mayor Landrieu speaks honestly about the consequences of ignoring race in our nation’s history as he removes Confederate monuments in New Orleans.

Danyelle Solomon

Related Priorities

Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice

Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice

We pursue climate action that meets the crisis’s urgency, creates good-quality jobs, benefits disadvantaged communities, and restores U.S. credibility on the global stage.

Restoring Social Trust in Democracy

Restoring Social Trust in Democracy

Democracy is under attack at home and abroad. We must act to ensure it is accessible to all, accountable, and can serve as a force of good.

Building an Economy for All

Building an Economy for All

Economic growth must be built on the foundation of a strong and secure middle class so that all Americans benefit from growth.

Advancing Racial Equity and Justice

Advancing Racial Equity and Justice

We apply a racial equity lens in developing and advancing policies that aim to root out entrenched systemic racism to ensure everyone has an opportunity to thrive.

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