Criminalization of Race and Poverty
Criminalization of poverty has increased significantly in the U.S. since the Great Recession of 2009. Poor and low-income people, especially people of color, face a far greater risk of being targeted, profiled, fined, arrested, harassed, violated and incarcerated for minor offenses than other Americans. A broken taillight, an unpaid parking ticket, a minor drug offense, sitting on a sidewalk, or sleeping on a park can all result in jail time.
The criminalization of poor people happens at the intersectional oppressions of race, class, gender and gender identity. The criminalization of children is especially inhumane and disproportionality affects low-income Latinx and Black children, LGBTQI children and children with disabilities. The school-to-prison pipeline is a significant factor in removing opportunities for self-fulfillment, education and employment, often creating and perpetuating poverty.
By conducting research and reports on the various components of these injustices, and supporting movements on the ground with resources and capacity, the Criminalization of Poverty project aims to encourage and influence policy that will move us from intersectional injustice into intersectional justice.
Latest Work
Biden's Populist Budget Marks the Overdue End of Trickle-Down Economics
Parsing Biden’s 2024 State of the Union Address
Housing Is a Human Right, Not a Privilege
80+ Organizations Urge Biden to Reject Inhumane Cuts to Critical Programs
The Radicalization of Climate Activism
Poverty Made an Alarming Jump. Congress Should Have Stopped It.
Affirmative Action Has Ended, but the Need for Diversity Hasn’t
Criminalization of Race and Poverty Program at the Institute for Policy Studies Responds to the Debt Ceiling Deal
Raise the Debt Ceiling, and Invest in America
The Human Cost of McCarthy’s Debt Ceiling Demands Would Be Catastrophic
When ‘Decorum’ Means ‘Mob Rule,’ It’s Time to Break It.
‘I Don’t Mind the Work’: An IPS Tribute to Harry Belafonte
Criminalization of Poverty Program at IPS's Statement on President Biden's Budget
President Biden: Don’t Negotiate With Fiscal Terrorists
An absurd issue demands an absurd solution: Let’s mint a bazillion-dollar coin to bring the curtain down forever on the Republicans’ farcical debt-ceiling theater
Four options for Democrats to avert another debt ceiling crisis
Americans of every race deserve a fair shot. Affirmative action provides one.
These midterm elections have enormous stakes for poor and low-income Americans
The data is in: Poverty is a political choice
Remembering Barbara Ehrenreich
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