White House Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Releases Groundbreaking New Report on Ending Poverty

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 27, 2016

CONTACT

Michelle Nealy, mnealy@faithinpubliclife.org, 202-735-7123

Mia Young, myoung@faithinpubliclife.org, 202-374-0416

White House Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Releases Groundbreaking New Report on Ending Poverty

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Faith in Public Life celebrates the release of the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships’ (PAFBNP) groundbreaking new report titled, Strengthening Efforts to Increase Opportunity and End Poverty. In this report, the council provides recommendations to the President to increase opportunity and reduce inequality.

Across the country, communities are on the front lines advocating for social justice and directly providing education, healthcare, and social services to many at-risk populations. The report highlights the critical role government must play in anti-poverty initiatives that promote greater economic equality.

“Poverty demeans human dignity, crushes the human spirit, and severs family and communal bonds. As leaders at the front lines of addressing poverty we see faces, not statistics in our struggle to address the systemic barriers faced by far too many Americans: barriers of race, class, gender and sexuality,” said Rev. Jennifer Butler, CEO of Faith in Public Life and chair of the White House Council on Faith and Neighborhood Partnerships. “Ultimately we are our brother’s and sister’s keeper. The wealthiest and most democratic nation on earth can and must work not just to reduce, but to eliminate poverty.”

After convening and deciding how to organize their work at the first public meeting last November, the council has presented recommendations to the Administration on a rolling basis through year-round meetings and conference calls. This final report is a culmination of those recommendations, some of which the Administration has already taken steps to implement.

The council underscores how poverty is caused in part by historic harm done to specific populations, including Native American communities and communities of color. For the sake of our nation’s economic, spiritual and communal well-being, the report recommends that we repair the breach and change those practices that have enabled some to benefit at the expense of others.

Key Recommendations Made by the Council:

Implement the Sustainable Development Goals in America, including a commitment to end extreme poverty and hunger by 2030.
Act to prevent and relieve lead poisoning, specifically in federally assisted housing.
Examine and address racial equity through federal agencies.
Commit to increasing engagement with forums that promote racial reconciliation.
Recognize and address the emotional harm, trauma and diminished social ties experienced by individuals, families and communities living in poverty in addition to their material needs.

To read the full report, click here.

Members of the council include: Council Chair Reverend Jennifer Butler; Bishop Carroll A. Baltimore; Preeta Bansal; Reverend David Beckmann; Reverend Traci D. Blackmon; Kara Bobroff; Rachel Held Evans; Rabbi Steve Gutow; Reverend Adam Hamilton; Aziza Hasan; Lanae Erickson Hatalsky; David Jeffrey; Naseem Kourosh; Dr. Jo Anne Lyon; Pastor Michael McBride; Nipun Mehta; Kevin Ryan; Reverend Dr. Gabriel A. Salguero; Barbara Satin; Dr. Stephen Schneck; Manjit Singh; Alexie Torres-Fleming; Deborah Weinstein.

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The President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships brings together leaders and experts in fields related to the work of faith-based and neighborhood organizations in order to make recommendations to the Administration on how to improve the partnerships it forms to serve people in need.