Our Strategic Approach to Building BIPOC Wealth

The GroundBreak Coalition is committed to expanding economic opportunity in Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP). The roots of racial and cultural disparities in MSP run deep, beginning with the forced displacement of Indigenous peoples and running through to intentionally exclusionary policies like restrictive covenants that continue to impede wealth building and social mobility today. GroundBreak believes the most effective way to ultimately improve outcomes for all residents, especially those from BIPOC communities that our systems typically exclude, is to concentrate our efforts on the aspirations of MSP residents who experience some of our region’s deepest and most persistent disparities and ensure that the outcomes of GroundBreak are realized on the ground in specific communities. Therefore, while remaining mindful of our overall equity objectives, GroundBreak will intentionally act to ensure Black people build wealth. By beginning with and designing strategies and policies that serve Black people, who experience disproportionate harm, we will unlock profound and more effective opportunities for wealth building. This will contribute to the creation of a vibrant, pluralistic society and new, proven strategies deployed to meet the needs of all BIPOC communities, and ultimately all Minnesotans.

BACKGROUND

The GroundBreak Coalition has adopted a targeted universalist approach. Targeted universalism posits that the most effective means of achieving population-level equity is to set universal goals, and then pursue them through strategies customized for specific groups within the population who experience the most difficulty in achieving the goals without significant and specific interventions. This approach leads to greater impact by threading the needle between broad policies that often unintentionally exacerbate disparities and highly exclusive ones that leave out too many people. GroundBreak’s goals are universal for all BIPOC communities, and by utilizing strategies that concentrate on Black wealth building we will create more opportunities for all BIPOC Minnesotans. Download statement (PDF)