Dear Atlas users,

We are excited to announce that the National Equity Atlas team is expanding! While the movement for racial equity continues to gain momentum across the nation, it is critical to center people and communities of color in our economy’s recovery and in our systems and policy change efforts. This additional staffing will allow us to take on more data requests from community leaders and organizers, conduct more original analyses, build more responsive data tools, and dedicate more time to supporting equity advocates and campaigns.

The National Equity Atlas Team Is Growing

The Atlas team is actively recruiting for three new positions: a director to lead the team, a senior associate to conduct research and analysis, and a senior communications associate to lead all of our media & dissemination activities. These are dream jobs for people who love data, use mixed-methods approaches, and want to produce innovative research and partner with grassroots organizations advancing racial and economic equity. We have a preference for Bay Area-based candidates, but encourage applicants from anywhere in the US who are passionate about racial equity and have experience working in and with communities of color. Learn more about the positions here and please share with your networks!

Atlas Featured in “How to Build an Inclusive Economy”

PolicyLink CEO Michael McAfee was included in Freethink’s recent video series on how to build an inclusive economy and lifted up the role of the Atlas in advancing the equity movement by highlighting key data insights that validate the experiences of communities of color and providing fuel to advance equity campaigns. “The National Equity Atlas,” he explained, “will give you a sense of how much a region, a city, a county, a state, would benefit by closing gaps in racial disparities.” Watch the video.

Racial Equity in Entrepreneurship Is Crucial for an Inclusive Recovery

At the recent Institute of Governmental Studies Research Symposium, Sarah Treuhaft joined a keynote panel to share key Atlas data and insights on the state of racial equity in entrepreneurship, noting that in the 10 most populous US cities African Americans remain underrepresented in business ownership. Removing barriers that prevent people of color from starting and growing successful businesses is a crucial inclusive growth strategy as entrepreneurship is an important pathway for building wealth and addressing the racial wealth gap and also creating jobs for workers of color.

In the News

This month, our Rent Debt Dashboard was covered by the Los Angeles Times, Cal Matters, Maryland Matters, CBS8, Mendocino Voice, and the Sahan Journal. Our study of California rideshare driver healthcare access under Prop 22 was covered by LawyersAndSettlements. You can find a complete list of news coverage here.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)
 

Dear Atlas users,

As evidenced by our most recent rent debt analysis, low-income people of color continue to suffer from the devastating impacts of the pandemic even as other aspects of the economy return to ‘normal.’ The majority of federal rental assistance has yet to reach those who need it, and a new report from The Housing Initiative at Penn found that other housing access programs like Housing Choice Vouchers reach just one in five low-income renter households who are eligible. With federal, state, and local governments working to pass policies to rebuild our economy, the Atlas team continues to equip advocates with necessary data and analysis to push for a just and equitable recovery. Here are some updates:

New Analysis Finds Fewer and Fewer Small Businesses Are Getting Federal Contracts

The federal government is the nation’s largest purchaser of goods and services, but our new analysis reveals that the number of small businesses doing business with the federal government has plummeted over the past decade: about 40 percent fewer small businesses fulfilled federal contracts in 2020 compared with 2010. We also found that while people of color own 29 percent of all American businesses, entrepreneurs of color receive less than 12 percent of federal government contracting dollars. Federal contracts are highly concentrated in just a few congressional districts, mostly in the DC metro area, that are home to less than 4 percent of the total population. A critical solution is within reach through the infrastructure package before Congress, but is at risk of being removed. Policymakers are negotiating the inclusion of a groundbreaking set of programs that would direct $2.4 billion to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other people-of-color-serving institutions to uplift the next generation of small businesses owners.

Updated Rent Debt Dashboard and Analysis Finds Mounting Debt for Low-Income Renters of Color

The share of renters with debt has not declined since April. Our updated Rent Debt Dashboard and analysis show that nearly 6 million renters remain in debt, and the majority of them are low-income people of color. Just 11 percent of federal rental relief funds have been distributed; our new map shows that many of the cities and counties with the lowest distribution of relief funds have large populations of low-income renters. Finally, we found that Black renters disproportionately expect to be evicted by October: 58 percent of Black tenants with rent debt say they are very or somewhat likely to be evicted, compared with 45 percent of their White counterparts. The dashboard continues to fuel community advocacy for debt cancellation and rent assistance. Recently, California-based Raise the Roof coalition cited our work in their presentation to the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors, while Housing4Hoosiers provided recommendations to Indiana’s Emergency Rental Assistance program using our data.

You’re Invited! The Power of Place: Addressing Structural Racism in the Workforce and Economy

On September 29, Atlas team member Abbie Langston will speak on a panel on racial equity and the workforce system at the Aspen Institute Opportunity Youth Forum alongside our partners at the National Fund for Workforce Solutions and local partners on our Advancing Workforce Equity project. The conversation will touch on structural racism in the world of work and highlight solutions that workforce systems, communities, employers, and training providers are implementing to improve career outcomes for students and young workers of color. Join us by registering here.

Fact Sheets Reveal Continued Housing Insecurity in Mid-Hudson Valley

Earlier this month, we produced a series of fact sheets on renters in New York’s Mid-Hudson Valley in partnership with For the Many, to support their advocacy for policies to protect renters from unfair evictions and predatory landlords. We found that housing insecurity is a region-wide issue. More than half of renter households in the Mid-Hudson Valley are rent-burdened, and Black and Latinx renters are especially impacted. In New Paltz, for example, nearly all Black renter households are rent-burdened. You can download fact sheets here for the following places: Ulster County, Beacon, Kingston, Newburgh, New Paltz, and Poughkeepsie.

In the News

This month, our Rent Debt Dashboard work was featured in the New York Times, CBS News, Bloomberg, Oklahoma Watch, Minnesota Post, Tampa Bay Times, The Hill, and Law360. Our work on California rideshare driver benefits under Prop 22 was featured in Jacobin and Dissent Magazine. See a complete list of news coverage here.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)

Dear Atlas users,

The Supreme Court’s rejection of the federal eviction moratorium threatens to push millions of renters out of their homes. As our Rent Debt Dashboard shows, over 6 million renters —  overwhelmingly low-income households of color who have recently lost employment — owe more than $21 billion in back rent, putting them at immediate risk of eviction. Just 10 percent of state rental assistance funds have been distributed, while many who have applied wait in limbo. The Atlas team continues to equip local advocates with data and research to make the case for robust renter protections. We’re currently analyzing the newest rent debt data and will release our findings and analysis on Monday, August 30. Here are some more updates: 

New Report: Most California Rideshare Drivers Are Not Receiving Health-Care Benefits under Prop 22

Nearly a year after tech industry giants won passage of a law that exempted them from classifying millions of their drivers as full-time employees, we produced a study in partnership with Rideshare Drivers United to analyze the impact of Prop 22 on rideshare and delivery drivers’ access to health care. Our survey of drivers found that just 10 percent of respondents are receiving health insurance stipends from Uber or Lyft, and 16 percent have no insurance — double the national uninsurance rate. We also found stark racial inequities: Latinx respondents are less likely to know about the stipends and are also more likely to be uninsured. With Prop 22 ruled unconstitutional last week, our research underscores the need to overturn this harmful legislation and prevent its spread to other states where Uber and Lyft are already campaigning for identical legislation. 

New Analysis Finds that Bay Area Residents of Color Remain Underrepresented in Elected Positions

Centering the experiences of the people most impacted by structural racism is an essential component of equitable policymaking. The Bay Area Equity Atlas team and Bay Rising are excited to share our latest analysis on the diversity of elected officials in the region, which shows that the region has seen steady growth in electeds of color, but people of color remain highly underrepresented. Strategies like campaign finance reform, leadership development programs, district-based elections, and expanded voter education and voting options can also foster a fairer and more inclusive Bay Area. Join us on September 9 for a webinar to learn more about this research and hear local leaders — like Shanthi Gonzales of Oakland Unified School District and Kimi Lee of Bay Rising — discuss strategies to build political power among communities of color in the region. You can register here. 

In the News

This month, our report on the impacts of California’s Prop 22 were featured in the SF Examiner, KQED, The American Prospect, Bloomberg Law, and Law360. Our rent debt analysis were featured on KMOV4, Multi-Housing News, Catholic Herald, BollyInside, WOSU Public Media, Northern Nevada Business Weekly, ABC Baltimore, PolitiFact, NBC5, Maryland Matters, Texas News Today, The Current, Market Watch, the Nevada Independent, and News Nation, among others. See the complete list of media coverage here.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)
 

 

Dear Atlas users,

We’ve had an exciting month, from launching the Racial Equity Data Lab to equipping housing advocates across the country with new data on the Covid-driven rent debt crisis. As summer kicks off, we remain focused on producing research and data tools to advance an equitable recovery and shared prosperity. Here are some updates:

Clearing $19 Billion in Back Rent Urgently Needed for Equitable Recovery

This week, we released new national and local data on our Rent Debt Dashboard, produced in partnership with with Right to the City Alliance. As of the end of April, 5.8 million renters — overwhelmingly low-income households of color who’ve lost employment income during the pandemic — owe nearly $19 billion in back rent. With the federal eviction moratorium scheduled to expire at the end of June, clearing this debt is urgently needed to prevent an eviction crisis and make equitable recovery possible. In California, our data was included in a report from Housing NOW, BARHII, and PolicyLink about how the state can strengthen its rental assistance programs. See the data for your community on the dashboard and check out our updated analysis. 

Rent Debt Data Supports “Cancel the Rent” Campaign in Oregon

In partnership with Oregon’s Community Alliance of Tenants, the Atlas team released a new fact sheet on rent debt and households behind on rent in Oregon. Even as economic recovery is picking up, in Oregon one in 10 renter households, many of whom are people of color and have low incomes, still owe a total of $170 million in back rent. These renters were the hardest hit by pandemic shutdowns and layoffs, underscoring the continued need for renter protections and rent cancellation as part of an equitable recovery. The new data were presented at the Oregon Cancel the Rent Digital Town Hall alongside stories and learnings from tenant leaders. You can find a recording of the town hall here.

Getting Started in the Racial Equity Data Lab: Create Your Own $15/Hour Fact Sheet

Last month, we launched the Racial Equity Data Lab, a new space on the Atlas where you can create unique data displays, dashboards, and maps. The Lab has everything you need to tell your community’s equity story using Atlas data: ready-to-use datasets, data visualization basics, and a step-by-step guide to get you started. You can watch the recording from our introductory webinar here.

Join us this Thursday, June 3, at 12 pm PT for the second installment of our three-part webinar series, “Getting Started in the Racial Equity Data Lab: Create Your Own $15/Hour Fact Sheet.” Through this series, the Atlas team and our partners at Tableau and Lovelytics will walk you through each step of creating your own $15/hour fact sheet, from accessing the data to publishing a custom visualization that you can download, share, and use to advance equitable recovery strategies in your community. If you missed Part 1: Exploring Your Data, you can watch the recording or follow the instructions in the step-by-step guide on the Lab to update the data for your fact sheet. Click here to register for Part 2: Designing Your Data Viz.

Atlas Team Presents to House Committee on Ways and Means

On May 21, the Atlas team shared the National Equity Atlas with the Ways and Means Committee, the chief tax-writing committee of the US House of Representatives on a panel titled, “Measuring What we Value: Bridging Gaps in Data and Reporting on Race and Ethnicity”that included experts in disaggregated data Randall Akee, Nancy Lopez Ninez Ponce, and Rhonda Sharpe. The Committee recently created a Racial Equity Initiative to address the role of racism in perpetuating health and economic inequities. The Atlas team shared our work to highlight the power of disaggregated data to advance equitable, targeted solutions.

You’re Invited: Join the Measurable Equity One Year Challenge

Join Clear Impact and the National Equity Atlas team for a webinar on June 15 (11 am PT / 2 pm ET) to learn more about the Measurable Equity One Year Challenge. Clear Impact designed this challenge to help government, non-profit, and foundation leaders assess, plan, and advance racial equity using a suite of free resources and tools, including a Racial Equity Scorecard powered by Atlas data. Register here.

In the News

This month, U.S. News, The Intercept, Duluth News Tribune, Governing, The Daily Californian, MPR News, Berkeley News, Minn Post, and AL.com all cited findings from our Rent Debt Dashboard, on both the national and local level. StreetsBlog cited our commute time indicator, which reveals that Black workers have 12 percent longer commute times than their White counterparts. Finally, Reuters covered the launch of our Racial Equity Data Lab.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)

April 27, 2021

Dear Atlas users,

With the conviction of Derek Chauvin, the Atlas team stands in solidarity with George Floyd’s family. True justice would be a world where George Floyd was never murdered. We remain committed to supporting the fight for racial equity and systemic justice through our analyses, disaggregated data tools, and campaign support. Here are some updates:

Join Us for the Launch of the Racial Equity Data Lab on May 6

The National Equity Atlas is America’s most detailed report card on racial and economic equity – and now we’re democratizing our data even further help you to build your own custom Atlas-powered data dashboards. Join us on May 6 at 12:00pm Pacific / 3:00 Eastern for the launch of the Racial Equity Data Lab, a new space on the Atlas where you can create unique data displays, dashboards, and maps. The Lab has everything you need to tell your community’s equity story using Atlas data: ready-to-use datasets, data visualization basics, and a step-by-step guide to get you started. We’ll also share a starter dashboard focused on the importance of raising the minimum wage. For example, in Dallas, fewer workers earn at least $15 now than in 1980, due entirely to racial inequities. Join this webinar to hear more about the Lab, how we’re using it to support equity campaigns, and how to create custom data visualizations for your community. Register now!

New Rent Debt Dashboard Tracks Covid Impacts to Support Broad Renter Protections

Stabilizing renters experiencing housing insecurity is key to an equitable recovery and lasting prosperity for our communities, so we partnered with Right to the City Alliance to equip advocates and policymakers with timely, local data on the extent of renter debt and the characteristics of households affected by it. Our regularly updated data reveals that the renters behind on rent owe an average of $3,400 – and the vast majority of them are low-wage workers, disproportionately people of color, who’ve suffered job and income losses due to the economic shutdowns. Without sufficient eviction protection, debt relief, and financial support, these Covid-impacted renters will be left behind. Visit the rent debt dashboard to see the data for your community, and check out our accompanying analysis.

In the News

This month, Forbes highlighted the Atlas as a key tool for advancing racial equity on a municipal level. Denver7 TV aired a story featuring the findings and implications of our rent debt analysis, and Planetizen also highlighted the data in our rent debt dashboard. Government Affairs called for the Biden Administration to develop equity indicators modeled after the Atlas. And ABC Cleveland, Energy News Network, and Akron Beacon Journal all cited our data in their coverage of racial inequities. See a complete list of media coverage here.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)