The Greenlining Institute is a public policy, research, and advocacy non-profit organization based in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. It seeks to advance economic opportunity and empowerment for people of color through advocacy, community and coalition building, research and leadership development.

History

The Greenlining Institute was established by

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...

, and

Latino American Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify as ...

community leaders in 1993 to fight injustice, increase the participation of

people of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...

in policymaking, and encourage successful investment by corporate America into these communities. Rather than just fighting

redlining In the United States, redlining is a discriminatory practice in which services (financial and otherwise) are withheld from potential customers who reside in neighborhoods classified as "hazardous" to investment; these neighborhoods have signif ...

, the illegal practice of denying services to certain communities, greenlining is the proactive effort of bringing profitable investments and services to communities that have been left behind. The Greenlining Institute was founded on the principle of wealth creation, with a strong belief that diversity makes business sense and leads to greater effectiveness.

Policy Issues

Philanthropy-related activities

In 2005, Greenlining began researching the philanthropic giving patterns of California's largest foundations and found very low investment in non-profit organizations led by people of color. According to the US Census, California's communities of color comprise over 50% of the state's population—making it a

majority-minority state A majority-minority or minority-majority area is a term used to refer to a subdivision in which one or more racial, ethnic, and/or religious minorities (relative to the whole country's population) make up a majority of the local population. Ter ...

. Greenlining found that philanthropic giving did not reflect California's population. Greenlining's introduced AB 624, which was a piece of “sunshine” legislation that would have require large foundations operating in California to gather and disclose pertinent diversity data. AB 624 would not have required foundations to invest in minority communities, and it would not have created racial quotas for grant-making and employment. This legislation was an attempt to get foundations to disclose data related to diversity on an annual basis. The bill was ultimately withdrawn.

Opposition to Uber

The Greenlining Institute opposed the expansion of

Uber Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber), based in San Francisco, provides mobility as a service, ride-hailing (allowing users to book a car and driver to transport them in a way similar to a taxi), food delivery (Uber Eats and Postmates), package ...

into

due to concerns that it would cause displacement of residents and

gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...

Community reinvestment

Greenlining's Community Reinvestment program works with banks and other financial institutions to equitably execute the

Community Reinvestment Act The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA, P.L. 95-128, 91 Stat. 1147, title VIII of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1977, ''et seq.'') is a United States federal law designed to encourage commercial banks and savings associations to hel ...

References

External links

Greenlining Institute website"California’s Greenlining Institute: Arm-Twisting for Financial Affirmative Action"
- criticism of the Greenlining Institute by the

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Capital Research Center Capital Research Center (CRC) is an American conservative non-profit organization located in Washington, D.C. Its stated purpose is "to study non-profit organizations, with a special focus on reviving the American traditions of charity, philanthr ...

{{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in California 1993 establishments in California