Grace Katabaruki on Learning about Race & Power

"Power Reframed" was the theme of the annual business meeting held by the Washington Regional Association of Grant makers (WRAG), based in Washington, DC. Both sessions of the meeting were engaging, motivating and inspiring, as seen through the lens of Grace Katabaruki, a local nonprofit professional.

Why interview Grace K Katabaruki?

Grace is a graduate of Harvard University who more than two decades ago majored in Afro-American studies under the guidance of luminaries such as Henry Louis Gates, Cornel West, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham and Judge Leon Higginbotham. Grace's graduate school experience includes a Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University with an earned Nonprofit Management certificate. She has also served as an intern for Congressman John Lewis and Senator Harry Reid when he was the majority leader. She also worked on a wide range of policy issues for Senator Jack Reed. Her current vocation is in strategic program development and implementation and philanthropic investment in the K-12 education sector.

 Grace expressed both excitement and enthusiasm after attending the morning session of "Power Reframed," which included a different perspective on the history of housing in America. The book discussed in the workshop was the

“The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, ” by Richard Rothstein. It reminded me of my dissertation at Howard University more than three decades earlier, “Equity considerations of a National Housing Voucher program on low income households in racial submarkets.” It was in the dissertation that I forewarn that Section 8, and its predecessors, would cause a decrease in the supply of low-income housing stock in major US cities and rental price inflation in housing markets that served predominately black households.

 In full disclosure, Grace is my daughter. Often we are akin to a mother-daughter tag team – she focuses on K-12 education policy and philanthropic investment and I focus on higher education innovations and initiatives for entrepreneurship and economic development. As I listened to Grace reflect on the WRAG event, I was struck by the intersections between her emerging interests and the work I've done throughout my career.

Below are Grace’s answers to my queries on why this particular event engaged and inspired her.

1.   Articulate how the session helped you clarify and define your personal passion for the "work?"

In many ways, it crystallized for me how I've been preparing to do this work before I even knew terms like "racial equity lens." I first started studying white privilege as a freshman in college. I went on to major in Afro-American studies, with a focus on Black women's history and literature. I didn't know the term "intersectionality" then, but that was what fascinated me--the challenges of mediating multiple identities.

In spite of having that foundation, the morning session, about the federal government's role in housing segregation, reminded me of how much I still don't know. When we really study the history, there's no denying that systemic racism continues to shape the society we live in today. It's daunting in how pervasive it is, but it also makes it clear that there is so much work today.

The afternoon session, which focused on power, was really invigorating. Sometimes, we look at huge problems and can feel powerless to change them. Eric Liu's talk reminded us that we have more power we can think and that unlike natural resources that we dig out of the ground, new power can be generated. That resonated with me because I am just beginning to recognize how critical community organizing is to creating change.

2. What most informed you about the nature and history of segregated public housing?

Having worked on housing policy on Capitol Hill and being familiar with some of my mom's research on subsidized housing and section 8, I thought I knew a fair amount. However, I generally held the perspective that the federal government had done an inadequate job of redressing housing inequity. Richard Rothstein's research lifts up how the federal government, by instituting segregated public housing and barring Blacks from FHA programs, intentionally created the segregated communities we still live in.

This is incredibly significant because most middle-class families have built wealth through homeownership. Much of the wealth gap between blacks and whites today can be traced back to FHA policies in the mid-20th century.

3. What are one or two takeaways you would like to share in learning to reframe power?

First, we have to talk about power. We have to name it. We like to believe that we're a meritocracy. Also, we're socialized to believe it's impolite to talk about who is powerful and who is accorded more resources and deference. But as Eric Liu pointed out, the only people who benefit from us not naming power is the group of people already in power.

Second, I'm so inspired by the idea that power is not a finite resource. In our society, so much of it comes from wealth or social status, but that's not the only way to get there. Regular folks like you and me can organize and mobilize and drive real change. My background includes some familiarity with legislative advocacy, but I'm just learning about community organizing. I'm eager to learn more because I know it's critical to change.

 Post Script: I have since purchased the audio version of the book, The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America,; I listened in awe. I don’t believe I could have kept turning pages as quickly with a hardcopy version of the book. Chapter after Chapter Rothstein validates his theory of public policy executed by the federal state and local governments designed to maintain the color barrier through segregated housing. It left me numb.

It is a sad commentary that one of the richest nations in the world lacks the will to solve the urban housing problem. Rothstein demonstrates that, supply side economics has failed. What’s next? Who will house the poor?

#housing #policy #income #economics #power #transformation #race #poverty
  #class