Beverly Reaves says she was shopping for a home the first time she felt racially profiled. The ordeal of facing police with guns drawn left her shaken and distrustful of police. Researchers are looking at how police patrol black and minority communities and say in a recent study that there is a stronger focus on black communities especially when it comes to drug enforcement.
Justin Flores of Asheville, N.C., no longer takes his wife to his family reunion. And many of his relatives don’t even talk to him anymore, even when they see each other in grocery stores.
Flores says this backlash is because he has taken a stand. The half Caucasian, half Latino 34-year-old is married to an African-American woman. And he has decided not to tolerate racially bigoted words...
Throughout the country, grassroots organizations are at work in communities large and small promoting racial justice and improved race relations. While their broad aims are often the same, many of these groups differ in their philosophies and employ widely differing methodologies. Too often, these groups avoid collaboration, foregoing the advantages it would bring because they are unable to see...
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
How can online dialogue on controversial issues of race and ethnicity strengthen local coalitions and promote action to address a specific issue? From Talk to Action is a booklet concerning racial profiling and how to make creative use of online dialogue to foster improved race relations and civic empowerment. The booklet has a dual purpose. First, it is intended as a guide to community leaders...
Tug-of-wars over style and strategy have often strained the relationship between groups in the race relations and racial justice movement. Some have been labeled as too confrontational, while others have been accused of working too much within the power structure. Holding Up the Mirror: Working Interdependently for Just and Inclusive Communities, published by the Joint Center for Political and...
Across America, there are examples of towns and cities that have not only united but also created a movement to stand up against hate--like Billings, Montana; Springfield, Illinois; and Rocky Mount, North Carolina. Clarksburg, West Virginia, provides another unique story with lessons to be learned from its response to the Ku Klux Klan. Steps Toward an Inclusive Community is a case study of how...
