Dear friends and colleagues,
Hope you’re all doing well! In this newsletter, we share a quick updates about new reports and resources HIP is releasing; highlight an inspiring convening of criminal justice and public health advocates we co-convened in NYC; and dive deep into a recent report assessing the health and equity impacts of a large-scale development project in Los Angeles. And as always, see a few announcements at the end!
Updates
Just this week, we released Stress on the Streets (SOS): Race, Policing, Health, and Increasing Trust not Trauma. The report highlights the physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral health impacts for black communities and police of current policing practices. We’ll report more about the project in our next newsletter. Join the conversation at #TrustNotTrauma on Twitter and Facebook.
Also, be on the lookout for the upcoming Community Participation in Health Impact Assessments: A National Evaluation in January. The first of its kind study describes the impact of community participation on civic agency – a community’s capacity to act in its own self-interest – and the success of an HIA, along with how well the field of HIA is doing at encouraging community participation. The evaluation intends to inform the work of HIA practitioners, and is relevant to researchers and organizations intending to authentically engage community members in addressing policy, program, or planning solutions. We’re hosting a webinar to share the evaluation’s very exciting and insightful findings on January 28 from 2:00-3:30 Eastern/ 11:00-12:30 Pacific. Please register here for the webinar, and we’ll follow-up with details soon.
National Public Health and Criminal Justice Convening
On November 9, Human Impact Partners and the Vera Institute of Justice co-convened over 40 criminal justice advocates and public health practitioners. from around the country at a groundbreaking, first of its kind convening. The event grew out of the idea that health and justice system leaders’ work in the pursuit of health equity, public safety, and social justice could be magnified by a powerful partnership across the fields of public health and criminal justice to advance these collective goals.
An advisory committee – with leaders from JustLeadershipUSA, The Sentencing Project, Ford Foundation, WISDOM, and Drug Policy Alliance – helped HIP and Vera envision what the gathering could accomplish, and ultimately proposed a bold and audacious goal: to develop an alternative vision for a justice system that works to improve population health and wellbeing at every step and to develop an agenda for collaborative work to achieve that vision.
Click here to read more about what occurred at the convening. We are inspired by the energy and commitment of convening participants. A deep thanks to them for working hard and giving each other the benefit of the doubt as they explored what it means to be in relationship with one another. A special thanks to Mari Ryono – our fearless facilitator – as well as Ford Foundation for hosting the event and Open Philanthropy for funding it.
This work is part of HIP’s Health Instead of Punishment Program, which grew out of our recently adopted Strategic Plan. Contact us if you're interested in learning more!
Reef Development Project Health Impact Report
In late October, Human Impact Partners, Esperanza Community Housing, Strategic Action for a Just Economy (SAJE), and other members of the UNIDAD Coalition released the report Assessing Health and Equity Impacts of the Proposed Reef Development Project in South Central Los Angeles. The report found that the proposed Reef Development Project, as currently designed, would place thousands of neighborhood residents at high risk of financial strain or displacement, which could negatively impact their health in many ways.
The Reef Development Project plans for the total renovation and expansion of a commercial area in South Central Los Angeles, and would cover 9.7 acres of land. It includes a 208-room hotel, two high-rise condominium towers, 528 mid-rise residential units, and 21 low-rise live/work residential units. This project is meant to be big. And with big projects come big impacts.
We found that about 4500 renters who live within ½-mile of the proposed Reef Development Project are already experiencing high housing costs. More broadly, 52% of the nearly 84,000 people living within two miles of the project could be at high risk of financial strain or displacement as a result of the development. Importantly, these pressures will happen within a historical context of civic disinvestment, segregation, concentrated poverty, and trauma experienced by the community.
And yet the project sponsors do not see it as their responsibility to respond to these challenges. The Reef Development Project contains no mention of affordable housing for this low-income neighborhood, and the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) states that because no residential units currently exist on-site, the project would not lead to displacement. This approach to measuring displacement is woefully inadequate. Extensive research shows that a process of indirect displacement can occur through financial strain and lack of affordable housing options, and that new development can contribute to these pressures. The project should therefore not only look at its effects on direct displacement – even if that is in compliance with the local law.
Based on these findings, our primary recommendation to the City and project developers was that the Reef Development Project engage in a cutting-edge trauma-informed approach to community development, which recognizes the existing community as assets and proposes that these assets—or people—are considered the building blocks for the future. The report also makes recommendations around affordable housing, displacement prevention, housing the homeless, creating employment opportunities for local residents, supporting small businesses, and providing better infrastructure and resources for community members.
After a press event that received substantial coverage in the local media, partners submitted the report as public comment on the draft environmental report, and have yet to see a response from project sponsors. They are now using the report to build awareness of the Reef Development Project in the community and in discussions with the City Councilmembers and City planners, whom they are encouraging to take a leadership role in ensuring community voices are heard and that development benefits the residents who already live in the area.
Announcements:
- We wish a warm farewell to Gus Alexander from UC Santa Cruz, who worked with HIP for a 6-month field study as part of her Community Studies degree. Thank you Gus!!
- We’re excited to report that the California Wage Theft bill (SB 588) recently passed!! Congratulations to our partners from the California Fair Paycheck Coalition who achieved this deserved victory. We were happy to contribute in a small way by coordinating an impressive group of health care, public health, and other health professional allies to support the bill – which gives the Labor Commissioner additional tools to combat wage theft. Based on the wage theft Health Impact Assessment we conducted, we know this will greatly benefit low wage workers, especially women, immigrants, and workers of color. Congratulations again!!
- Check out these exciting job opportunities!
There is much to be grateful for. We are deeply appreciative to our staff for the passion, commitment, and energy they bring to our work to transform the policies and places people need to live healthy lives. We are honored to support many amazing partners at community organizations, public agencies, and elsewhere who embody dignity and inclusion in their movements to create a more just and equitable society. We are humbled again and again to be of service to equity and justice, particularly in this increasingly tumultuous world. And we thank you for being a friend, colleague, and support to us over the past decade.
Wishing you the best for a happy and healthy 2016!!
Afomeia, Celia, Dawn, Fabiola, Gus, Holly A., Holly L., Jen, Jonathan, Kim, Lili, Logan, Marnie, and Sara
