Speakers at an event last week made a powerful and compelling case for equity as a growth strategy.
Minnesota stands out for some striking inequities tied to race – embarrassing disparities when it comes to educational attainment, unemployment rates, income levels, poverty and other important measures of both individual well-being and the economy.
A problem? Yes. A challenge? Yes. An opportunity? Absolutely!
Speaking at an Anchoring Equity presentation, coordinated by the Metropolitan Council, the Northwest Area Foundation and others, john a. powell noted that Minnesota tapped the potential of women in the state decades ago by advancing opportunities at a time when women faced barriers and many argued, for example, that education was wasted on women.
As a result of increased equity for women, a whole new segment of the population put its talents to work and helped move forward the Minnesota economy and the prosperity of the state’s families and households. The United States did likewise, well ahead of most countries worldwide.
The issue, said Ohio State University’s powell, is not redistribution but growth.
Angela Glover Blackwell from PolicyLink, another speaker at the event, defined the term. Equity is “just and fair inclusion into a society where all can reach their full potential.”
Glover Blackwell pointed out the moral imperative for addressing inequities. But she, too, emphasized the potential for economic growth that results from doing just that. “Equity is the superior growth model,” she said.
Growth & Justice makes the same argument in its recent report and policy brief, We’re All in This Together: Educational Achievement and Attainment by Minnesotans of Color.
As the report notes, “With Minnesota’s population becoming increasingly diverse, we as a state have the chance to address and overcome these educational inequities, tap the talent and potential of all Minnesotans, and secure the Minnesota advantage well into the future.”
We’re certainly not there yet. Nekima Levy-Pounds from the University of St. Thomas’ Law School cataloged many of the disturbing inequities in Minnesota, focusing on differences in situations and outcomes for black and white Minnesotans.
Minnesotans must awaken to the sense of urgency, build the political will to change the situation, and ensure that Minnesotans of color are at the table leading these efforts from the start, she said.
Speaking after Levy-Pounds outlined the disparities, Glover Blackwell gently asked if the audience was embarrassed by the inequities in the state and, for that matter, in the nation.
“These disparities are horrible. They are troubling. And something needs to be done about them,” she concluded.
Indeed. They affect us all.
– Matt Kane
Thx Matt! You are spot on. I appreciate how you intentionally refrained from using the inappropriate "achievement gap" language that people of color are increasingly rejecting. You are a good listener! It's essentially an opportunity gap. I greatly appreciate the work and leadership of Growth & Justice!
Posted by: Marcus Harcus | July 08, 2011 at 01:23 AM