Government Alliance on Race & Equity (GARE) is now a joint project of Center for Social Inclusion (CSI) and Haas Institute for a Fair & Inclusive Society (HIFIS), two national organizations focusing on racial equity and inclusion.
Over the last year, we have seen exponential growth in both community and government’s understanding of the importance of addressing racial equity. Deep and persistent racial disparities with depressed life opportunities for all, along with changing demographics, have driven a national movement to build a more inclusive, responsive, and effective democracy.
We can’t get to an effective democracy without taking on race and equity. Right now, we have the opportunity to move a meaningful “side-by-side” strategy that leverages both the power and innovation of communities of color and the power of local government to create racially equitable communities.
– Glenn Harris, CSI President and former Manager of the City of Seattle’s Race & Social Justice Initiative
Through the partnership, GARE will continue to bring extensive experience to local and regional government to move a racial equity agenda, which includes normalizing conversations about race, operationalizing new policies and practices, and organizing, both within government and with community.
Understanding the impacts of race on our overall society is critical to our success. As partners, CSI and HIFIS will support GARE in its work while implementing connected strategies to align community, government, and academia to move towns, cities, and states toward racial equity and inclusion.
In the coming months, CSI, HIFIS, and GARE will release more tools for community, government, and academia to advance racial equity in local and regional government and to move toward a more inclusive democracy. Specifically, in 2016, CSI will launch a national open-source campaign and toolkit for grassroots organizations, particularly grassroots organizations of color, to partner with their local and regional governments to advance racial equity.
I’m excited about this partnership and our approach to promote structural and cultural inclusion for positive change. By bridging the strengths of community, government, and academia, we can start to address the deep and systemic inequities that impact our communities. This joint approach should be a model for our field—partnering on our resources and leveraging the greatest impact of our work for communities.
– john a. powell, Director of HIFIS
In order for us to achieve racially equitable outcomes in our communities, it is critically important that we develop a network of government focusing on racial equity.” Julie added, “GARE becoming a joint project of CSI and HIFIS means we now have the opportunity to align community, government, and academia in a way that improves life outcomes for everyone, particularly for communities of color.
– Julie Nelson, Director of GARE