"Poverty in Black Boston: A Public Town Hall Discussion and Seminar" 

The  Center for Church and Prison is a center for the study of religion and penal reform with the focus on research, resource and solution development. It explores the influences of poverty, religion, race, gender, social and cultural biases on crime, punishment, imprisonment and law enforcement in the penal systems of the United States and the United Kingdom. Its ultimate goal is individual rehabilitation and community development.www.churchandprison.orgObjectives: The pursuit of:Respect for human dignity in the penal systemRehabilitation of prisoners in the penal systemRestoration of prisoners based on family, economic empowerment and self-developmentReintegration into the community and society as contributing members.In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Center for Church and Prison

<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">Your voice is important.<BR></H4>
<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">I do not claim that you are ignorant of the concerns analyzed in this invitation. They are concerns you are very conversant with and are witnessing. What I am trying to raise are the questions of "consequence” and “Solution.” A generation of especially Black youths in Mattapan, Dorchester and Roxbury in Boston are facing the prospect of grave economic doom. In communities where only less than 10 percent own bank accounts with liquid asset far below any economically appreciable level, that community will not survive the modern economic challenges. And since communities consist of individuals, those individuals will be confronted with displacement, social marginalization and particular forms of economic depression.</H4>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">I preface my comments on the summary statements from the joint report of Duke University and the New School produced by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston in 2015: <I>The Color of Wealth in Boston</I> (attached). Other reports that have highlighted similar concerns. They include: <I>Race to Equity: The State of Black Massachusetts</I> (2015), <I>Giving Black Boston: An Intimate Portrait of Black Stewardship in Boston</I> (2015), <I>Economic Inclusion and Equity Agenda</I> 2016, and <I>Boston’s Booming…But For Whom</I> 2018, and the <I>2011 State of Black Boston</I>. Read: https://churchandprison.org/latest-prison-news/poverty-in-black-boston-public-town-hall-discussion-and-seminar/<BR></H4>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">"There exist key differences in liquid assets, which may be thought of as representing buffers to income and expenditure shocks. The typical white household in Boston is more likely than nonwhite households to own every type of liquid asset. For example, close to half of Puerto Ricans and a quarter of U.S. blacks are unbanked (that is, they do not have bank accounts) compared with only 7 percent of whites. For every dollar, the typical white household has in liquid assets (excluding cash), U.S. blacks have 2 cents, Caribbean blacks 14 cents, and Puerto Ricans and Dominicans less than 1 cent."</H4>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">Poverty in Black Boston is becoming increasingly obvious. Take a walk at Downtown Crossing on any day. In the midst of an increase in gentrification, high rates of unemployment, the impact of well-documented incarceration of especially young Black men in Boston, the impact of the long-term process of marginalization is already bearing fruits of grave economic disparity. These developments were predicted by expert and excellent reports analyzing the impacts of sociopolitical and economic marginalization of minority groups in Boston and their restriction to necessary resources for social mobility.</H4>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">We invite you to a public town hall discussion and seminar on Poverty, Race and Development in Mattapan, Dorchester and Roxbury entitled: </H4>
<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">               "Let's Talk About Poverty, Race and Development in Black Boston: 'Mattapan, Dorchester and Roxbury."</H4>
<P><BR></P>
<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">This public town hall discussion and seminar is solution oriented. The goal is solution development, resource availability and empowerment for folks to take steps to self-develop their communities. Please come with ideas, suggestions, and next step comments! Self-initiative is a valuable asset.  <BR></H4>
<H4>The format of the event:</H4>
<UL>
<LI><SPAN></SPAN><SPAN>Opening panel discussion</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Breakout group discussion</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Closing panel discussion with suggestions from group discussions</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Closing Remarks on the need for self-development and initiative.</SPAN><SPAN></SPAN></LI>
</UL>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal"><SPAN>We need your voice, ideas, comments and suggestions to be a part of the solution process during the breakout sessions. Please plan to attend. Please feel free to forward this to individuals you think might be interested in this sort of discussion. We are still looking for individuals and organizations to sponsor this event. The event is Free. </SPAN><BR></H4>
<P><STRONG>Our Needs:</STRONG></P>
<UL>
<LI><SPAN></SPAN><SPAN>Easels and writing boards: 6</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Pens and markers</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Flashcards</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Name tags</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Markers</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Water, juices and cups.</SPAN></LI>
<LI><SPAN>Box lunches (The event is four hours and free)</SPAN></LI>
</UL>
<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">Contact information: Email: churchandprison@gmail.com, Tel: 857-346-6905. Address: The Center for Church and Prison, Inc. P. O. Box 146, Boston, 02121. <BR></H4>
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<H4 CLASS="MsoNormal">"Whites and nonwhites also exhibit key differences in less-liquid assets that are primarily associated with homeownership, basic transportation, and retirement or health savings. While most white households (56 percent) own retirement accounts, only one-fifth of U.S and Caribbean blacks have them. Only 8 percent of Dominicans and 16 percent of Puerto Ricans have such accounts. Most whites—79 percent—own a home, whereas only one-third of U.S. blacks, less than one-fifth of Dominicans and Puerto Ricans, and only half of Caribbean blacks are homeowners."</H4>

Mattapan Library

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"Poverty in Black Boston: A Public Town Hall Discussion and Seminar"

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