Houston Unveils Blueprint for Equity

Nearly a quarter of Houston's population lives in poverty—a scenario five times more likely for Black and Latino children than white children, according to a new report from Mayor Sylvester Turner's office. 

The report, Rising Together, was recently published by the mayor's equity task force as rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Harvey have brought equity to the forefront of public discourse. In addition to a public program to generate 20,000 jobs by 2022, recommendations include a $15 minimum wage and local-hire policies for city employees and contractors; scholarships for early childhood education; and increased investment in affordable housing and infrastructure.

Those proposals "took into account the city's financial constraints," Urban Edge writer Leah Binkovitz explains, noting that evictions and unpaid taxes and utility bills cost the city up to $117 million each year.