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Insight News • January 12 - January 18, 2015 • Page 7
BUSINESS MN ranked #2 in listing of the worst states for Black Americans By Thomas C. Frohlich, Alexander Kent, Alexander E.M. Hess, Douglas A. McIntyre and Ashley C. Allen 24/7 Wallstreet - online Racial disparities in social and economic outcomes exist in all parts of the United States but they are particularly bad in Minnesota according to one study. Black Americans make about 62 cents for every dollar earned by white Americans. Black Americans are also twice as likely to be unemployed and considerably more likely to live in poverty. In some places, these disparities are even more pronounced. In many of the worst states for Black Americans, there are opportunities to get a good job, earn good pay, and buy a home in a good community. However, these opportunities are not uniformly accessible across racial lines. Based on an examination of a number of socio-economic measures, 24/7 Wall St. identified the worst states for Black Americans.
According to 24/7 Wall St., the worst states for Black Americans in descending order are Arkansas, Kansas, New Jersey, Connecticut, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Rhode Island, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Minnesota, with a state population of 5.4 percent Black, has a Black homeownership rate of 25.7 percent (5th lowest), a Black incarceration rate of 2,321 per 100,000 people (22nd lowest), a Black unemployment rate of 15 percent (tied-11th lowest) while the unemployment rate for all people is just 4.9 percent, ninth lowest in the nation. According to the findings, a typical black household in Minnesota earned less than half the median income of white households in 2013, well below the 62.3 percent nationwide. Low incomes among the Black population are likely due in part to a high unemployment rate. While 15 percent of Black workers in the state were unemployed in 2013, fewer than 5 percent of the total workforce did not have a job, a gap nearly twice as large as the national gap. While only 6.9 percent of
A typical black household in Minnesota earned less than half the median income of white households in 2013.
white residents in the state did not have health insurance in 2013, nearly 33 percent of Blacks were uninsured. Additionally, Black Minnesotan households were three times less likely than white households to own their homes, a rate nearly twice as high as the rest of the nation. In 2013, more than 7 percent of Minnesota’s Black population was barred from voting as a result of felony convictions or imprisonment. Nationally, less than one in
five black adults had attained at least a bachelor’s degree as of last year, versus a rate of nearly one in three among the white population. While the percentage of black adults with at least a bachelor’s degree in some of the states on our list was relatively high, the education gap between Black and white state residents was larger than the national gap in nine of the worst states. The unemployment rate among college-educated black Americans
is still about twice that of collegeeducated white Americans. Inequalities in economic outcomes also persist. Nationally, a typical Black household made just 62.3 percent of the median income of white households in 2013. Among the worst states, differences in income and poverty were nearly all worse than the national difference. In some states, such as Wisconsin and Minnesota, the median income of Black households was roughly half that of white households. In fact, less than 42 percent of Black households were homeowners, while more than 71 percent of white households owned a home as of 2013. Differences in rates of homeownership are often far more extreme in the worst states for Black Americans, the study found. In Minnesota, for example, three out of four white households owned their homes. Meanwhile, only one in four black households in the state owned their home. Nationally, Black Americans were more than five times as likely to go to prison than their white peers as of 2013, and the problem
was considerably worse in all 10 states on the list. To determine the 10 worst states for Black Americans, 24/7 Wall St. created an index of 12 measures from a variety of data sources. The index was designed to assess race-based gaps in access to resources and opportunities in each state, rather than measure the availability of resources and opportunities in those states. It ranked the size of the race gap for each measure, with the largest gap receiving the worst score and excluded states where Black residents comprised less than 5 percent of the population. To construct the index, it considered data from the U.S. Census Bureau on median household income, poverty rates, educational attainment rates, homeownership rates, and the percentage of people without health insurance. Unemployment figures came from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data on incarceration rates and disenfranchisement came from The Sentencing Project and are for the most recent available year.
Media coverage: More than a press release FUNdraising Good Times
By Mel and Pearl Shaw Will 2015 be the year your nonprofit is highlighted in news stories and feature pieces? Will those who could benefit from the work of your organization read about you in the newspaper, see a story on TV, or listen to an interview on the radio? The media could “somehow� find
out about your organization and decide to cover it. Or you could dedicate time and resources to cultivating media. Here are four things to consider when engaging the media in 2015 Meet with the editorial board of your local paper. If you are looking for TV or radio exposure, meet with the station’s management. To secure this meeting, call the editor or station manager and request a time to meet. If your organization has a marketing person on staff, he or she should secure the meeting. If you don’t, ask a member of the board who has marketing experience or a relationship with
the media to make the call. If you are without this resource, the executive director should request the meeting. During the meeting make the case for your organization, share your impact, and your plans for the coming year. Ask about their guidelines for how to share news about your nonprofit. Request assistance in creating awareness for your organization, its programs and events. Ask for their criteria when covering an organization such as yours. Who should you contact? How much lead time is required? What constitutes a good news story and what types of feature
stories are they looking for? Be prepared to honestly answer questions they may ask of you, especially those that may be uncomfortable. Bring your media kit. Your kit should contain your case for support, annual report, program highlights, testimonials, and an annotated board list. It should also include a calendar of upcoming events such as fundraisers, lecture series, performances, receptions, and visits by people of note. As appropriate, include a list of the businesses and organizations you partner with, and any honors and awards.
Be prepared. The executive director, board chair, top development person and top marketing person should attend the meeting. All should be prepared. Create an agenda and determine what role each person will play. Follow up. Keep your media contacts apprised of key staff changes and promotions, new board members and upcoming events. If you have expertise on a topic in the news, let them know you are available as a resource. Invite reporters to visit your organization to learn more. Building media relationships takes time. You have to build a
relationship with the media same as you would with a potential donor or board member. Get organized and integrate media relations into your work plan. Build a partnership that creates awareness and provides accountability. Copyright 2014 – Mel and Pearl Shaw Mel and Pearl Shaw position nonprofits, colleges and universities for fundraising success. For help with your fundraising visit www. saadandshaw.com or call (901) 522-8727.
FROM MICHAEL MANN DIRECTOR OF HEAT, COLLATERAL AND THE INSIDER
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