What is opportunity—and how is it shaped by race and structural inequality? Based on insights from Stephen Menendian, Head of Research at OBI, this visual explainer breaks down life pathways, equity, and systems change in a powerful new way.
Structural racism — or the way systems like housing, education, employment and justice create racial disparities without overtly racist actors — is a concept that is often “deeply misunderstood,” according to Stephen Menendian.
In this Berkeley News feature, OBI Research Director Stephen Menendian discusses his newly released book "Structural Racism: The Dynamics of Opportunity and Race in America," which examines how American systems and structures perpetuate racial inequality beyond individual prejudice.
California voters are being asked to roll back a milestone criminal justice reform this election, in the form of Proposition 36. This initiative would elevate certain misdemeanors, like petty theft and non-violent drug crimes, into felonies. It would...
When john a. powell arrived at the University of California at Berkeley about a decade ago, he found a competition that spoke to a struggle outside academia. The nationally renowned civil-liberties scholar (who spells his name all lowercase) had been picked to lead...
The “Structural Racism Explained” video draws upon many varied sources in formulating specific definitions for different types of racism. The video and prompts provided in this video and teaching guide are designed primarily for teachers to help students clarify and sharpen their understanding of the material.
This report was submitted in July 2022 to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in review of the US government’s compliance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD).
What are ways to incorporate histories of racial exclusion in housing into the 11th grade History classroom? This powerpoint gives a brief overview of two units designed for 11th grade U.S. History on the topic of Racial Exclusion & Housing Policy...
Using Cedric Robinson’s Black Marxism as a point of departure, this powerpoint explains the concept of racial capitalism which connects racism to financial markets and explains how race and profits are intricately intertwined. Additionally, the...
This glossary contains key terms related to race & housing and is a great document to start with and keep referring back to as you teach about race & housing. Terms featured include: othering, individual racism, institutional racism, structural...
The seas off the coast of Spain are starting to warm up, and in a day of calm seas, migrants set out to Europe, packed tightly into light boats called ‘cayucos’. It is a difficult trip, but one worth it...
Redlining and housing discrimination outlawed over half a century ago baked racial disparities into our landscape, but today’s housing policies do little to reverse them, and in many instances continue to reinforce deep patterns of racial segregation...
In order to move forward, we need to understand our past. This powerpoint covers histories of racial exclusion and dispossession in Bay Area housing. It is based on the Othering & Belonging Institute's publication, Roots, Race & Place , and...
Students increasingly know about the history of redlining as a system of racial exclusion. But what role did capitalism play? And is it possible to have capitalism and not have racial exclusion? This four-lesson unit invites students to grapple with...
In 2015 a group of Swedish-Somali mothers came together to organise as mothers against the deadly violence in their neighbourhood and to promote safety by night patrolling and conducting other community-based activities. The mothers live in one of Sweden’s racialised suburbs...
This a repository of policy-based recommendations for addressing structural and systemic racism or advancing racial equity drawn from a vast array of published material.
This essay provides an overview of our open-source, searchable repository of policy-based recommendations for addressing structural and systemic racism or advancing racial equity drawn from a vast array of published material.
Today we launched the “ Structural Racism Remedies Project ,” a vast repository of scholarship, advocacy, and policy ideas for interventions to dismantle structural and systemic racism. The policies contained in this repository take many forms and...
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