Ma Makin king the Case g the Case for for Syst Systems Cha ems - PDF document

Ma Makin king the Case g the Case for for Syst Systems Cha ems Change ge Ta Tacklin ckling th g the Iss e Issues ues of G of Gentr entrifica ificatio tion & n & Displa Displacemen cement Dr. Tiff r. Tiffany ny Ma Manuel nuel Ema mail: : DrT@T DrT@TheCa eCaseM eMade. ade.co com STRONG, PROSPEROUS, AND RESILIENT COMMUNITY CHALLENGE (SPARCC) Webinar Presentation Notes February 13, 2019

2 “Building the public will necessary to transform the systems that shape the future of our communities, is one of the most critical challenges of our time.” Dr. Tiffany Manuel Author, Backfires, Bias and Bedtime Stories: The Urgency to Solve What Ails America , Forthcoming 2019 Now Now, , mor more th e than an ev ever, , we we need to eed to invest invest in Obj Objectiv tives es fo for th the Re e Researc search h on on building building publi blic w will ill a aroun ound th d these ese iss issues. es. Gentri Gentrifi fiction an tion and Dis d Displac lacemen ement The work to build the public will to This brief summarizes the general advance equitable and inclusive objectives of Strategic CaseMaking™ and development may be tougher than many research conducted by Dr. Tiffany Manuel of us realize. While we are lifting data, to elevate the capacity of social policy and programmatic solutions, we are changemakers to advance anti- often missing the opportunity to change displacement and equitable development the narrative about wh why equity and policies. This work should help inclusion matter; wh what “equity” and changemakers: “inclusion” actually mean; wh why equitable • recognize the challenges and the development is a shared public concern; importance of building public will in and wh what systems changes are needed to support of these policies advance better outcomes for all. • identify what current practices are working to advance these issues in In addition, addition, w whil hile we e we are often are often wo working ing to to the field already and alternatively, build pol build polit itical ical wi will, w ll, we m e miss iss th the e what practices are making it more conc oncommitan ommitant ( t (and and p per erhap haps s more more difficult to generate support and diffic difficult) lt) chall hallen enge of e of bu buildi ilding public public wi will ll. • provide recommendations for Policymakers may be the gatekeepers of making a stronger case for public resources, but it is broad public support (or support around these issues, outrage) that enables the kind of scale create a stronger appetite for needed to transform systems and enact systems change, and to do so, in an longer-term, more impactful solutions. equitable and inclusive way. www.T .TheCas heCaseMade.c eMade.com om

3 “…the more problematic issue here is that the economic plight of low-income Americans is worsening, and we do not have the public support we need to scale policies that would improve their well-being and transform the racially/ethnically segregated neighborhoods in which they live….” Dr. Tiffany Manuel Who Gets to Live Where, and Why? The Answer May Be Settled By Our Narratives To Too often o often we l we let ou et our data an data and d While we hile we know ow th that at man many Amer Americ icans ans resear esearch h ab about out the the challeng hallenges es fac facing ing feel per feel p erson sonally ally em empathetic athetic to towa wards ds low-inco low income fam e famili ilies es and and co comm mmuniti ities es those who ar those who are s e str trugglin ling, , as as rec ecen ent t of co of colo lor, , stan stand-in in for for a a strong strong call all-to to- polli olling s suggests ests, , our our publi blic p poli olicies ies action. ac tion. And And when when we we do, do, it often it often wr wrea eak of of a g a growi wing an antipath tipathy towa toward th d the e backfires. backfir es. That That is, is, ou our data data and and poor oor th that is at is diffic difficult t lt to dislodg o dislodge. e. resear esearch h ultimatel ltimately bec becom ome th e the e Many of the same people who say in polls neg egativ ative flas e flash h poi oint f t for or p people eople who who that they are in favor of better housing feel disconnected f feel disconn ted from t om thes hese iss e issues es solutions for residents, fail to support more more g gen ener erall ally, , or or who dis ho disagree wi agree with th the the br broad oader er s set of et of poli olicies es that that wo would ld affordable housing developments when adv advanc ance equitab e equitable d le dev evelopm elopmen ent. t. they are proposed in nearby neighborhoods; fail to support local or We often overestimate the extent to which national legislation that would make it data, research and evidence can move possible to foster more equitable or public support for action. Surely, data are inclusive development; and fail to support important for designing, implementing and the community organizations trying to evaluating investments that help residents help low-income residents remain in their stay connected to their homes, but those neighborhoods, as new investments are data must be embedded in a broader effort taking place. The issues of gentrification to make the case for systems change in an and displacement are at the heart of this equitable and inclusive way, if they are to problem, as they show how little be helpful in elevating public support. sustained public appetite there is to Elevating the wrong data – especially when fundamentally correct or address these it is about people of color – produces an issues through policies and systems especially unfortunate backfire that change. undermines an equity agenda. www.T .TheCas heCaseMade.c eMade.com om

4 “While it may be true that Americans believe that everyone should have a decent place to live, the logic that Americans use to understand why people do not have the housing they need, as well as what should be done about it, are encapsulated in these dominant narratives .” Dr. Tiffany Manuel Dismantling the Narratives that Constrain Public Support for Fair Housing: The Urgent Need to Reframe the Public Conversation to Build Public Will To To advan advance s e suppor ort f t for or p poli olicies an ies and d The p The primar imary s str trateg ategy op oper erativ ative in e in th the e programs ograms that that need s eed scale, we m ale, we must st do a do a field toda field today is is aw awaren eness ess rai raisin sing – our our mu much h better better j job of n ob of nav avigatin igating th the e tr trifec ifecta ta of of attemtp attemtps s to br to bring ing m mor ore visi e visibi bilit lity to to the the the mos the most dominan dominant n t nar arrati ative ves s ( indi individu vidual l displac disp lacemen ement h t hap appen enin ing in in ou our re resp spon onsibi sibili lity ty, , mobil bility ty and and ra racia ial differ l differen ence ). commu ommuniti ities. es. Yet, Yet, th the lac e lack of of aw awar aren eness ess is is NOT NOT th the chall e challen enge we e we When these dominant narratives operate fac face. e. Mo Most st people eople know ow h how ow bad th bad the e in tandem (as they do on the issue of ec economi onomic ci circums mstances tances ar are fo e for low low- gentrification), it is a trifecta that leads to inco income me famili families es and and m most ost middle cla middle class ss a predictable refrain – you are not ar are jus just on t one p e pay ayche heck awa away from from “entitled” to this neighborhood. Change financial finan ial dis disaste aster and and/or /or dis displacem lacemen ent t means: themselves. them selves. • it is your own responsibility to Our work in “awareness raising” find/afford a decent place to live ( The consistently backfires because it evokes Narrative of Individual Responsibility ); a zero-sum attitude, a “what about me”, separate-fates response. An attitude that • move to a place that better reflects your does not recognize the struggles of low- budget and paycheck ( The Narrative of income families as unique but rather Mobility ) and something we are all trying to stare down! • any racial or ethnic differences between The question often asked - why focus who gets to stay in this neighborhood and more attention on the poor or people of who has to move, is merely a reflection of color when all of us are feeling trapped by the work ethic and cultural values of those an increasingly fragmented social safety negatively affected groups rather than a net, economic pressures to keep our structural, spatial and system problem families afloat, and a government that ( The Narrative of Racial Differenc e). feels like it is in full-fledged free fall? www.T .TheCas heCaseMade.c eMade.com om