Real and lasting economic opportunities for Black families will come only through a serious national reckoning on race.
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Economic Justice
Combating inequality means both lifting up and building power at the bottom, and breaking up concentration of wealth and power at the top. That’s why we work at the intersection of economic and racial justice through projects designed to build leadership and self-empowerment of black workers, immigrant workers, and low-wage workers, youth and families affected by incarceration, along with projects aiming to reverse the rules that criminalize poor people of color, and projects fighting to ensure that the wealthy and Wall Street corporations pay their fair share of taxes.
Latest Work
The Rise of the Monster DAFs
Rising like monsters from the deep, donor-advised funds (DAFs) have finally caught up with foundations as the wealthy donor’s charitable warehousing vehicle of choice — and are poised to eclipse them.
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From the Wall Street Journal: A Deeply Flawed CEO Pay Analysis
The paper’s ‘corporate effectiveness’ lens mischaracterizes the views of management visionary Peter Drucker on pay equity and employee empowerment.
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It’s Time to Crack Down on Excessive CEO Pay
The pay gap between workers and CEOs at America’s largest low-wage employers is now 670 to 1. That’s obscene.
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Reining in Philanthropic Megadonors: What the Data Tell Us Is Needed
While megadonor gifts are celebrated, the growing dominance of large donors speaks to an erosion of democratic values. This must be addressed now.
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Etsy Sellers Strike for a Fairer Marketplace
Artisans rely on Etsy to market their creations, but the platform’s profit-maximizing policies hurt more than they help. Here’s why the sellers went on strike.
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Janet Yellen’s Noble Effort Comes to Naught
To end the tax games rich people play, we need more oomph than isolated officials can deliver.
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Report: Gilded Giving 2022
Our nation’s charitable system is in danger of becoming a taxpayer-subsidized platform of private power for the ultra-wealthy.
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Does the Future Belong to People Who Profit Off Our ‘Excessive Wealth Disorder’?
A promising new national campaign is aiming to ‘TURN’ around a profoundly unequal USA.
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Giving USA 2022: Charity Sector Stable but Increasingly Top-Heavy
Giving USA 2022 is the gold-standard report on charitable giving in the United States. But this year’s story glosses over two important pieces of long-term context: what has happened to the giving capacity of typical Americans, and where much of the charitable giving has actually gone.
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Reports
REPORT: Executive Excess 2023
These “Low Wage 100” large corporations are enriching CEOs at the expense of both workers and taxpayers.
REPORT: Still A Dream: Over 500 Years to Black Economic Equality
60 years after the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, the racial wealth divide persists.
REPORT: The Warfare State: How Funding for Militarism Compromises Our Welfare
Nearly two-thirds of the federal discretionary budget goes to militarized federal programs, leaving just over a third for our communities — a sliver some lawmakers want to cut even further.
REPORT: A Tale of Two Retirements 2023
Our tax code helps CEOs retire in luxury while ordinary workers struggle. Here’s how to fix it.
Report: High Flyers 2023: How Ultra-Rich Private Jet Travel Costs the Rest of Us and Burns Up the Planet
In this report, we assess the environmental, economic, and security risks of private jet travel — and lay out tax reforms to offset them.