Margaret Simms visits |
WSSU to expound on i
economic justice I
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
Last week, Institute
Fellow at the Urban
Institute in Washington,
D.C. Margaret C. Simms
stopped by the campus of
Winston-Salem State
University to discuss eco
nomic justice, poverty, and
racism.
During her half-hour
lecture, Simms told the
dozens of students and pro
fessors in attendance that
the war on poverty is more
than income support and
job training programs.
Simms said while poverty
continues to decline across
the country, the differences
in income between black
families and white families
is proof that more has to be
done.
"In 2014 black families
had about 56 percent of the
median income of white
families," said Simms. "In
terms of family income, we
don't seem to be moving
towards justice."
Simms noted while
blacks have made some
progress in terms of mov
ing up in higher income
categories, they are still
twice as likely to make a
lower income.
"Is that justice?" asked
Simms. "I think not."
Simms also discussed
federal programs and ini
tiatives that were put in
place to address poverty
and racial barriers in the
1960s such as Affirmative
Action, Equal
Employment Opportunity
Commission, Black
Capitalism and others.
"The expectation of
these programs was that
they would have a greater
Simms
"In 2014 black
families had
about 56 percent
of the median
income of white
families."
?Margaret C. Simms
impact on racial minori
ties," said Simms.
"Although minorities
gained a lot from a number
of these programs, many
fell short of their goal of
improving the quality of
life of those in the worse
situations."
According to Simms,
the programs did little to
reduce the structural racism
that tend to get in the way.
Structural Racism is
defined as the normaliza
tion of historical, cultural,
institutional, and interper
sonal dynamics advantage
of whites, while producing
cumulative and chronic
adverse outcomes for peo
ple of color.
Simms told the stu
dents, in order reduce
poverty and inequality,
they have to take the les
sons learned from these
programs, those that
worked as well as those
that didn't, and use them to
move toward economic
justice in terms of employ
ment opportunities.
As for structural
racism, Simms said, "We
have to come together and
work towards building
community assets that help
connect people to jobs and
support black entrepreneur
ship. "In the end," contin
ued Simms, "the solutions
are not all that difficult to
identify. It is the public will
that will get them done.
This cannot be solely a fed
eral government effort."
Following her lecture,
students said they learned a
lot about how the federal
government plays a role in
poverty and inequality that
has been going on for
years. Sophomore Aaron
Johnson said, after listen
ing to Simms, he now
understands the importance
of knowing the history of
the African-American
community.
"I learned a lot about
the history of this nation
and how it works," said
Johnson. "African
Americans have come a
long way but we still have
a lot of work to do."
Simms' visit to WSSU
was for the James A. Gray
Lecture Series. Supported
by an endowment estab
lished in 1952, the James
A. Gray Lectures annually
bring outstanding scholars
and faith leaders to the
campus to engage some of
the most pressing issues in
public life.
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Saturday, April 2 ? 2-4pm |
Wilson, N.C. - Wilson Fike High School, |
500 Harrison Dr. N, Wilson, NC 27893 g
Saturday, April 9 ? 1 pm g
for the official Spring Football Game! 1
Atkins High School, Old Greensboro Rd., |
Winston-Salem |
There will be prizes, giveaways and games. Bring 2
canned goods for entry and in support of the Second Han/est
Food Bank and WSSU Student Food Pantry. I
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