September 22, 2022

Earlier this week, Hurricane Fiona left a path of destruction across Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic and millions without access to water or power— reminding many of the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria five years ago. “A lot of people—more than (during) Maria—lost their houses now… lost everything in their houses because of the flooding. Maria was tough winds. But this one, with all the rain, it just destroyed everything in the house,” said Juan Miguel Gonzalez, a business owner in Puerto Rico.

A new Brookings Institution report finds retail spaces are undervalued by 7 percent in majority-Black zip codes compared with similar retail spaces in other zip codes, amounting to $171 billion in lost wealth for business owners. “The overall body of our work now shows that, similar to how we discriminate against individuals, we also discriminate against entire neighborhoods by not giving them the benefit of the doubt,” says Andre Perry, a coauthor of the report.

Martha’s Vineyard is a summer getaway for many wealthy families and celebrities, but for the workers who keep the island afloat, finding affordable housing is near impossible. Teachers, firefighters, doctors, and government workers are struggling to afford rent, and while some employers have stepped up to provide housing, it isn’t enough. “We’re hemorrhaging people who are our infrastructure, who hold this community up,” said Laura Silber, the coordinator of the Coalition to Create the Martha’s Vineyard Housing Bank.

The Supplemental Security Income program was created nearly 50 years ago to lift Americans who are older, blind, or disabled out of poverty, but now, its payments aren’t keeping up with rising rents. Many of the 8 million people it serves are currently experiencing or are at risk of homelessness. “Any time someone shows up and says ‘I want to pursue housing,’ my heart drops a little bit. I have to be honest and tell them it could be a year to three years. Even if someone wants to just rent a room in a house, it could take up their entire check,” says Rachael Mason, a social worker at the Triune Mercy Center in Greenville, South Carolina.