A quarter-century ago, in a series of Sacramento Bee articles that later morphed into a book, I described how California was undergoing dramatic economic and social change and quoted from a paper co-written by University of California, Davis, economist Philip Martin about the state’s future to wit:
“… The possible emergence of a two-tier economy with Asians and non-Hispanic whites competing for high-status positions while Hispanics and blacks struggle to get the low-paying service jobs. … ”
The concept of a segmented, even segregated, California was somewhat revolutionary in the mid-1980s. After all, wasn’t California the embodiment of mobile egalitarianism?
Three economic booms and three busts later, with 11 million more people, largely because of heavy immigration and a high birth rate, California has clearly reached the highly stratified condition that Martin and others saw coming. (more…)
Connecticut has received nearly $17 million to participate in a national experiment to try to stop homelessness in its tracks.
The homeless are having more trouble getting help because of state budget cuts, and federal stimulus funding in September will fill only part of the gap, service providers for the homeless say.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is a massive legislative package proposed by the Obama administration and passed by Congress in February 2009. The ARRA aims to stimulate the United States economy by expanding funding to a host of different government programs and government funded contracts, by providing tax relief to individuals, and by assisting states and local governments currently facing budget shortfalls. The following presentation was created by Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency for the Berkeley Community Coalition.