SOURCE: AP/Charles Dharapak
Jissela
Centeno and her son Matthew Pineda of Arlington, Virginia, whose family
is from Honduras, participate in a rally for immigration reform at the
U.S. Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, April 10, 2013.
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All-In Nation: An America that Works for All is a
collaboration between the Center for American Progress and PolicyLink.
To download individual chapters and essays, or view additional materials
related to the book, please visit www.allinnation.org.
Executive Summary
By Vanessa Cárdenas and Julie Ajinkya
America is at a juncture. We are a nation confronting issues that go
to the core of our values: What do we do about the growing inequality in
the United States today? How do we maintain and grow a sustainable
middle class while creating pathways to the middle class for those
living in poverty? How do we ensure that we take care of our elders with
dignity and respect? And how do we provide a clear and timely pathway
to citizenship for immigrants that is both fair and just?
The backdrop to these policy concerns is the inexorable demographic
shift that is taking place in the United States. Today the majority of
our children under the age of 1 are of color, and before we reach the
end of this decade, more than half of all youth will be of color. Yet
communities of color continue to face longstanding barriers on the
economic, educational, and social fronts. Consider this statistic: By
2018, 45 percent of all jobs will require an associate’s degree or
higher. Yet today, only 27 percent of African Americans, 26 percent of
U.S.-born Latinos, and 14 percent of Latino immigrants have that level
of education.
The challenge in front of us is clear: How do we maintain our
standing as a country of opportunity and upward mobility, ensuring that
today’s and future generations of Americans have the tools and skills to
succeed?
Yet with every challenge, there is also an opportunity. Our growing
diverse population offers us advantages that other nations don’t
have—specifically human capital, which is the greatest asset of any
economy. And unlike other countries such as Russia, Germany, and Japan,
our population is growing thanks almost entirely to communities of
color. Diversity drives innovation, encourages entrepreneurship, and
creates new markets. What’s more, our growing diverse communities can
provide us an unparalleled advantage in an increasingly global economy.
Thus, underlying the story of racial inequity, there is a greater story
that has as its protagonist a young and vibrant population—youth of
color—that is ready to maximize opportunities, provided they have the
tools to succeed.
All-In Nation highlights the economic
benefits of ensuring the success of communities of color. Groundbreaking
analysis presented here estimates gains on a set of five economic
indicators if Americans were able to eliminate racial and ethnic
disparities that perpetuate inequality in our nation today. If racial
and ethnic differences were eliminated, the average total personal
income in 2011 would have been 8.1 percent higher; our gross domestic
product would have been at least $1.2 trillion higher; 13 million people
would have been lifted out of poverty; federal, state, and local tax
revenue would have increased by $192 billion; and the long-run deficit
in Social Security would be reduced by more than 10 percent.
This is what compels the Center for American Progress and PolicyLink to present
All-In Nation: An America that Works for All—the need to implement an equity policy agenda that reduces inequality and manifests the potential of our diverse population.
The need is urgent: If we do not change course and invest in
strengthening communities of color and other communities that have been
left behind, our middle class will continue to erode and our nation will
be unprepared to successfully compete in the global economy. We must
intentionally create an All-In Nation—ensuring opportunity for everyone
and securing America’s economic future.
This book lays the groundwork for federal policies that would create a
more equitable economy and a more equitable nation. The chapters herein
all make the fundamental argument that such policies are an economic
imperative for our nation. Spanning multiple policy arenas, from
education and workforce development to democratic participation, the
policy recommendations are all made with the goal of ensuring that all
Americans, regardless of their racial or ethnic background and
circumstance, class standing, or neighborhood of residence, can have a
fair and unfettered chance to succeed and contribute to the well-being
of our economy and our democracy.
The opening chapter, “
Creating an All-In Nation,”
introduces the foundational premise of this book by explaining how our
nation has historically worked toward including those who were
previously marginalized, and why increasing diversity should
be understood as an economic opportunity to be fully embraced. While
inequity poses economic risks to our future prosperity, diversity
produces innovation, creates new businesses that perform better, and
generates new markets and consumer bases. This chapter presents a
guiding vision, a new narrative, and a framework for directing the
development of an All-In Nation.
The discussion turns next to the economic imperative of reducing racial and ethnic gaps. The “
America’s Future Workforce”
chapter argues that better preparing our diverse population with
education and training opportunities is critical for our nation’s
economic competitiveness. Without all hands on deck, our nation will not
be able to count on future economic prosperity.
The ensuing chapters lay out a progressive policy agenda in key
areas: infrastructure; jobs and the economy; health care and healthy
communities; education and workforce development; immigration; criminal
justice; and democratic participation.
Each policy chapter is introduced with a personal essay written by a
public figure, explaining how he or she came to understand the urgency
of taking bold action—from renowned educator
Geoffrey Canada’s moving account of why every child deserves to succeed, to jurist and activist
Michelle Alexander’s
description of how her own treatment of a young black man changed the
way she thought about criminal justice and race, to actress and
community organizer
America Ferrera explaining the
importance of voting, and many others. Each essayist shares deeply
personal convictions about why they believe our nation needs to change
course.
“
Infrastructure: Supporting Communities So All Can Thrive”
explains the importance of modernizing our public infrastructure system
so that communities of color are not left lacking the basics that so
many Americans take for granted and can take advantage of the jobs and
economic opportunities associated with infrastructure maintenance and
development. Infrastructure deficiencies in urban and rural communities
of color often stem from years of inequitable and discriminatory
land-use planning, yet sound investments have been shown to transform
neglected and struggling communities into healthy, thriving
neighborhoods by linking them more firmly to their regional economies.
“
Jobs, Income and Assets: Economic Security for All”
argues that national economic growth relies on individual economic
security—having enough money to cover a family’s basic needs and
sufficient savings or assets to invest in its future. Yet economic
security has become increasingly elusive for far too many Americans and
for people of color in particular. In order to increase economic
security, our national economic policies must focus on creating good,
family-supporting jobs; building a strong workforce and a growing base
of entrepreneurs; and strengthening the nation’s capacity to innovate
and produce.
“
Building Healthy Communities for a Healthy Nation”
relays the tremendous influence a seemingly inconsequential ZIP code has
in determining whether an individual will be healthy or sick, or even
how long he or she will live. Due to historic patterns of racism and
disinvestment, the neighborhoods where people of color live tend to have
fewer of the resources and opportunities that promote good
health—including grocery stores, farmers’ markets, quality health care,
and safe streets and parks—although these neighborhoods have more fast
food outlets, liquor stores, and pollution sources, which lead to
preventable health problems. The nation’s future depends on putting
everyone on a path to good health by ensuring high-quality health care
for all and by expanding “healthy communities” strategies that make
neighborhoods healthier places to live, work, learn, play, and prevent
people from getting sick in the first place.
“
Education and Job Readiness for a Prosperous America”
warns that the United States is losing its competitive edge globally
because our education system is failing a sizable group of students,
namely those of color. To have the world-class workforce we will need
for future prosperity, we must arm schools with a steady pipeline of
effective teachers, sufficient funding and learning time, and
college-ready standards. We must also make sure that we expand workforce
opportunities available to students while they are in school as well as
hard-to-reach adult populations in order to ensure they are well
positioned for gainful employment.
“
Americans in Waiting: An Immigration System that Works”
describes the central role that immigrants play in our economy. For
those who are currently undocumented, the social and economic benefits
that come with a road map to full citizenship are shown to go a long way
toward fixing our nation’s deeply flawed immigration system. And for
those who are authorized to be here, it is still important to implement
policies that lead to full integration and encourage participation—on
the job, in schools, and at the voting booth. Immigrant incorporation
and integration constantly test and ultimately strengthen our nation’s
commitment to its core values of equality, freedom, and opportunity.
“
Locked-Up Potential” reminds the reader of the
nation’s badly broken criminal justice system. Despite the fact that
violent crime rates are at historic lows, mass incarceration has
spiraled out of control, leading to a system of racial
disenfranchisement that perpetuates inequality as well as an
unsustainable level of corrections spending that diverts money from
important institutions such as hospitals, universities, and key national
priorities. The federal government should learn from state innovations
that have reduced corrections spending and establish a policy framework
that encourages our criminal-justice system to promote rehabilitation
instead of punishment, productivity instead of decline, and equity
instead of the racial- and income-based disparities that now run
rampant.
“
Democratic Participation and Leadership in a Diverse Nation”
describes the need to reinvigorate our democracy by encouraging the
formation of institutions that are more inclusive of our increasingly
diverse population’s needs and interests. Communities of color continue
to face barriers to democratic participation such as voter repression,
limited access to leadership positions, and naturalization obstacles for
immigrants that have historically prevented them from helping to shape
our institutions of governance and civic engagement. These communities
are key to support an equitable policy agenda focused on investments
that would strengthen the middle class, including a fair tax plan,
affordable health coverage, and improved public education.
Each policy chapter concludes with specific policy recommendations
that the federal government can take action on today to help reduce
barriers that prevent all Americans from contributing fruitfully to our
economy and democracy. Often inspired by innovations already occurring
at the state and local level, these recommendations create a policy
framework for Congress and the administration to build a fairer and more
vital economy and nation.
The analysis and policy recommendations in this book create a
framework for manifesting an All-In Nation. CAP and PolicyLink hope that
this book compels immediate action by Congress and the administration
and that it will jumpstart a local and national conversation about a new
pathway to a strong and equitable future.
At this crossroads moment
All-In Nation
points the way to a future where individual freedom is enhanced, shared
prosperity is ensured, and, in the words of famed American writer and
historian James Truslow Adams, “a land in which life should be better
and richer and fuller for everyone.”
To download individual chapters and essays, or view additional materials related to the book, please visit www.allinnation.org.
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