Racial Equity Toolkit

Posted by Government Alliance on Race and Equity on March 5, 2019

An Opportunity to Operationalize Equity

What is a Racial Equity Tool?

Racial equity tools are designed to integrate explicit consideration of racial equity in decisions, including policies, practices, programs, and budgets. It is both a product and a process. Use of a racial equity tool can help to develop strategies and actions that reduce racial inequities and improve success for all groups.

Too often, policies and programs are developed and implemented without thoughtful consideration of racial equity. When racial equity is not explicitly brought into operations and decision-making, racial inequities are likely to be perpetuated. Racial equity tools provide a structure for institutionalizing the consideration of racial equity.

A racial equity tool:
• proactively seeks to eliminate racial inequities and advance equity;
• identifies clear goals, objectives and measurable outcomes;
• engages community in decision-making processes;
• identifies who will benefit or be burdened by a given decision, examines potential unintended consequences of a decision, and develops strategies to advance racial equity and mitigate unintended negative consequences; and,
• develops mechanisms for successful implementation and evaluation of impact.

Use of a racial equity tool is an important step to operationalizing equity. However, it is not sufficient by itself. We must have a much broader vision of the transformation of government in order to advance racial equity. To transform government, we must normalize conversations about race, operationalize new behaviors and policies, and organize to achieve racial equity.

From the Government Alliance on Race and Equity
https://www.racialequityalliance.org/

Toolkit: https://racialequityalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/GARE-Racial_Equity_Toolkit.pdf