OKPOLICY.ORG
An overview of our work on Race & Equity Issues
Oklahomans of color still face huge gaps in wealth, health, and opportunity. These gaps reflect a long history of violence and discrimination, as well as continuing state and national policies that disproportionately arrest and incarcerate Oklahomans of color, suppress wages, deny health coverage for Oklahomans who need it, and neglect our public schools even as the task of educating children is made far more difficult by the effects of poverty and discrimination. We work to uncover these disparities and support policies that bring us closer to racial justice, equity, and opportunity for all Oklahomans.
See all of our race and equity research here.
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Areas of Focus
Race & Equity Facts
Featured Articles and Reports
Tulsa Race Massacre: After the national spotlight fades ….
The national spotlight will shine on our state in the coming days as we gather to commemorate the centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre and its aftermath. Soon, however, this attention will fade and many long-standing issues will remain for Oklahomans to address. In addition to wrestling with the question of reparations, we need to More...
Reducing Oklahoma’s court fines and fees is police reform
While much of this conversation has been focused on municipal budgets and inadequate funding for mental health and social services, it’s also critical that lawmakers consider how the system of court fines and fees contributes to racial disparities in both policing and incarceration. More...
Millions of dollars in court debt hang over residents of Oklahoma’s poorest neighborhoods
Earlier this year, we released a report detailing the growth of fees attached to criminal court cases in Oklahoma. We found that as legislators attempt to prop up falling state revenues, fees have risen for every type of crime. When low-income defendants can’t keep up with payments on their enormous financial burdens to the court, More...
Lawmakers must confront racial disparities head-on as they reform the justice system
The need for criminal justice reform is well illustrated by outrageous top-level statistics showing Oklahoma’s imprisonment rate among the highest in the nation (about 700 in prison per 100,000 residents), and a need to bring down spending on corrections (nearly half a billion dollars in FY 2016 and yet vastly insufficient to safely operate our prisons). While More...
OK PolicyCast Episode 15: Oklahoma’s Racial Wealth Gap
You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or RSS. The podcast theme music is by Zébre. Each week, the OK PolicyCast brings you the most important news about Oklahoma and what it means. In this episode, we talk with Kate Richey about what’s created the huge wealth gap between whites and people of color in Oklahoma. You can download More...
