GCI Governance Cluster
Hosts Myron Orfield and Tyrone Forman
On August 29th, 2007 the GCI Governance Research Cluster
hosted two speakers on the topics of race and regionalism, and race
and housing in metropolitan Chicago. The lecture was a success
with more than fifty professionals attending.
The first speaker, Myron Orfield, is a Brookings Institution
senior fellow and nationally renowned expert on regionalism. His talk “Race,
Inequality, and Regionalism,” addressed regional solutions to poverty and income
disparity by race.
Dr. Orfield pointed out that Supreme Courts in 29 states have
struck down school financing laws that would allow schools to use property taxes. However,
in Minnesota, there is currently a property tax revenue sharing program as well as
progressive aid to municipalities. While this is a good step in the right direction
in helping to alleviate integration issues, he was also quick to point out that these
reforms do not completely solve the segregation issue. Dr. Orfield mentioned that
Illinois has passed a fair housing act and the suburbs should deploy the low income
tax credit in order to help comply with this regulation.
Orfield is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Minnesota
and Executive Director of UM's Institute on Race and Poverty at Law School. He is widely
recognized as an expert on civil rights, state and local finance, land use, regional governance,
and the legislative process.
While serving in the Minnesota state legislature, Orfield helped develop
tax-sharing policies for the Minneapolis-St. Paul region. His book "Metropolitics: A Regional
Agenda for Community and Stability" was described in The Nation as offering "a lasso to join
constituencies and enhance cities, not whip them."
The second speaker, Tyrone Forman, is an Associate Professor of African American
Studies and Sociology at UIC. His presentation, “Race and Housing in Metro Chicago,” addressed the
changing demographics of race, ethnicity, and poverty in the Chicago area.
Dr. Forman spoke of possible reasons why segregation persists; one reason
mentioned is benign ethnocentrism, meaning part of the reason for the increase in segregation
is that black people want to live with themselves. His research shows this is not the case
at all. He also pointed to studies of segregation by Amy Stuart Wells which found that
white children were less likely to develop bigotry and bias towards others in integrated
schools. Forman mentioned that due to reforms in Illinois, municipalities are not
eligible for infrastructure funding if they do not offer affordable housing options. He
also pushed for Chicago to begin utilizing the low income tax credit in order to integrate.
Forman is a fellow of UIC's Institute for Government and Public Affairs.
He conducts research on intergroup relations, racial attitudes, racial stratification, and
adolescent health and well-being, with support from the Russell Sage Foundation and the
National Institutes of Health.
Some of the key points of discussion within these lectures looked at the
experience of minorities in regards to segregation in schools and housing. Children of
minority descent tend to perform better in integrated schools. Also, generally speaking,
minorities experience fewer choices regarding housing. It was pointed out that the
timing is right for Chicago to push for policy change that would help promote integration.
Gathering the right mix of people from the various academic institutions and civic foundations
to discuss the region’s options would not be difficult given Chicago’s rich diversity of
organizations and resources. Coming out of the lecture, there was a general consensus
that the keys to achieving integration involve regulation, litigation (enforcement of regulation),
education, coalition building, and school finance reform.
This lecture was part of the GCI Seminar Series, which invite experts,
practitioners, and academics to speak on current issues and innovative research. This particular
lecture was organized by the GCI Governance Research Cluster -- a working group of researchers
studying practices of sound and effective governance. For more information, or to contact GCI,
please call (312) 996-8700.
|
