How the Racial Bias in Our Big Money Political System Undermines Our Democracy

Posted by Demos on January 26, 2015

Big-Money Political System Holds Back Racial Equity

A new report from Demos argues that the dominance of corporate and wealthy private donors in the American political system disproportionately harms people of color, who are more likely to be low- or middle-income workers. Stacked Deck: How the Racial Bias in Our Big Money Political System Undermines Our Democracy and Our Economy finds that the top 10 percent of wealth holders are more than 90 percent white, and that the vast majority of federal contributions in recent election cycles came from wealthy white donors. The authors argue that the federal government is much more responsive to these wealthy donors, exacerbating economic and racial inequities. They recommend broad changes to the electoral system, such as matching public funds for small contributions, to amplify the voices of low-income and minority voters.

http://www.demos.org/sites/default/files/publications/StackedDeck_0.pdf