A Homestead Act for the 21st Century
This report proposes a 21st Century Homestead Act that would counteract the legacy of racially discriminatory housing policies by investing in revitalization of distressed communities.
Re-Build Our Country
To build a great democracy, we need to change the way we think about our government’s role in building a more prosperous, safe, and healthy society for all Americans. The government engages in policy on everything from housing, to health, to education and retirement, but decades of privatization, deregulation, and outsourcing have gutted these programs and turned them into boondoggles for private industry. What’s worse, many of these programs were tilted by design to work for some Americans and not others, exacerbating racial and geographic inequality.
Investments in public schools, libraries, social security, housing programs, and healthcare are more than just good economic policy – they are the symbols of what our government does for all of us, tangible reminders that American society is a shared national project in which we all take part. They are also places where Americans come together despite their differences. In an era of increasing polarization and isolation, these shared projects are more important than ever. The Great Democracy Initiative will offer plans to reimagine our shared national projects.
Central Banking for All: A Public Option for Bank Accounts
While the rest of us have to deal with fees, minimum balances, and delays in payment clearing at commercial banks, the banks themselves get a much better deal. Morgan Ricks, John Crawford, and Lev Menand offer a proposal to give all Americans access to bank accounts at the Federal Reserve.