Updates from the racial justice field and Prosperity Now

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Dear John,

I hope this month’s newsletter finds you safe, healthy and busy checking off your summer reading and concert lists. We are definitely feeling the summer vibes here at Prosperity Now with the official kickoff of Camp Prosperity, our online advocacy boot camp. And there’s still time to attend the nautical-themed fun! Whether you are a new advocate or a long-time expert, we hope you’ll consider joining the rest of our Camp sessions this summer.

We've also had the opportunity to meet up with our partners in the field. I recently had the pleasure of speaking to a room full of DMV-based partners and community members at our Building High Impact Nonprofits of Color (BHINC) DMV roundtable event. As we wrap up the sixth year of this BHINC initiative, I can’t help but reflect on the growth and impact of this important work, something I’ve had the opportunity to witness from inception even before my time working at Prosperity Now. I celebrate the Programs Team and key staff that have supported each cohort of BIPOC-led organizations by conducting trainings and sharing resources to help leaders of color build sustainable organizations that address the broad and deep racial wealth divide.

John, this is just one example of how Prosperity Now continues to leverage our expertise and partnerships to create big change and help people realize the opportunity to prosper across the country. Please read on for more exciting updates about our work and resources to help you advance our shared mission of creating an economy that works for everyone.

In Solidarity,

Cherie Collins Sims, PhD

Interim President and CEO

Prosperity Now

Ain’t No Party Like a Baby Bonds Party 🎉

...Cuz a Baby Bonds party don’t stop! And neither does our push for this policy solution that can help address generational poverty and help set up kids and families for financial success. 👶

Thank you for joining us last month on Capitol Hill and online for our Day of Action for Every Kid’s Future. Watch below for highlights from the event and to learn why we refuse to stop wearing our yellow hats.

This Barbie Has the Latest Blogs from Prosperity Now 🎀

Riding the Six-Car Train to Racial Economic Equity [[link removed]]

Urban design has never been neutral in this country--from the development of the U.S. interstate highway systems ripping through Black communities across the country to the creation of suburbs as refuges for white flight, to the very well-known and clearly observed history of redlining. We examine the public transit system in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area and discuss how we can move closer to transportation justice.

Work Requirements Don’t Work [[link removed]]

Today, folks 50 years old and younger must show proof of employment to receive SNAP benefits for more than 3 months in 36 months. But these new requirements are wholly against the original purpose of the program. Read this piece for why we must “snap” back to SNAP’s roots and truly support families in need.

The Future of Homeownership May Not Include Gen Z [[link removed]]

High-key, the affordable housing crisis is having major impacts on Gen Z homeownership. Read this piece for more on why we must invest in our nation's future and ensure a pipeline to financial security through homeownership.

Despite “New” Great Migration, Little Increase in Black Homeownership Rates [[link removed]]

From about 1910 - 1970, Black people moved northward during the Great Migration, looking to pursue education and employment opportunities, and to escape racial violence and the codified oppressive system of Jim Crow in the South. Generations later, the trend has reversed as Black families are moving back to Southern states, largely for the same reasons that originally caused them to leave. However, data shows that despite an increase in the Black population in the South, Black homeownership rates have barely budged.

Debt Ceiling Deal Undermines an Equitable Tax System [[link removed]]

The cumulative effects of the severe lack of funding of the IRS fall largely on lower-income households and households of color, particularly Black tax filers [[link removed]]. If we hope for any chance at a just and equitable tax system Congress must stop drawing from IRS funding at first sight of economic distress and must continue to provide the IRS with the base funding it receives each year along with the IRA’s funds, specifically by reinstating the $21 billion lost in the debt ceiling deal [[link removed]].

This Summer's Sizzling Opportunities 🌞

Calling All Entrepreneurs: Walmart Kicks Off Application Period for Open Call 2023 [[link removed]] | Walmart

Walmart began accepting applications for its tenth annual Open Call event, inviting small business owners and entrepreneurs everywhere to apply for the opportunity to pitch their products to be sold on Walmart or Sam's Club shelves or on Walmart.com. Applications [[link removed]] are open until August 18, 2023.

Hot Off the Press 🔥

Literary Hub: Garrett Neiman on Uprooting the Old Boy’s Club in Order to Transform America [[link removed]], Garrett Neiman, Senior Fellow

The New York Times: Transcript: Ezra Klein Interviews Darrick Hamilton [[link removed]], Prosperity Now

Yahoo! Finance: Taxes: Why the IRS sent incorrect notices to taxpayers impacted by natural disasters [[link removed]], Joanna Ain, Associate Director of Policy

Yahoo! Finance: Taxes: Last chance to claim your 2019 refund [[link removed]], Joanna Ain, Associate Director of Policy

MReport: Using Mortgage Reserves to Help Narrow the Black-White Homeownership Gap [[link removed]], Prosperity Now

Nonprofit Quarterly: Movement Economies: Building an Economics Rooted in Movement [[link removed]], Prosperity Now

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