Immigrant Inclusion & Racial Justice

December 15, 2015

Report partners: Americas Society/Council of the Americas (AS/COA), Welcoming America, and the Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII) at USC

By Manuel Pastor (CSII), Rhonda Ortiz (CSII), and Els de Graauw (Baruch College, the City University of New York)

Please note: reports dated earlier than June 2020 were published under our previous names: the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) or the USC Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII).

Opening Minds, Opening Doors, Opening Communities: Cities Leading for Immigrant Integration identifies 64 city-level institutions in places as diverse as Nashville, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and Salt Lake City where local authorities are promoting immigrant integration.

In recent months, the tenor of the debate around immigrants and refugees in the United States has frequently gone beyond realities and figures, touching on deep concerns about identity in a changing America.

This report provides a fact-based approach to the efforts that municipal governments as well as civic and business leaders are making to defuse potential tension and capitalize on the considerable impact that immigrants make in boosting the U.S. economic and civic vitality.

In the absence of a coordinated effort at the federal level, U.S. cities and metropolitan areas are at the frontlines of the economic, social, and civil integration of the foreign-born population. By examining the origins, functions, and goals of existing immigrant integration initiatives, this report identifies best practices and offer recommendations for other cities to follow.

Download report

Opening Minds, Opening Doors, Opening Communities: Cities Leading for Immigrant Integration

Read our other publications by research area

    Immigrant Integration & Racial Justice

    Our work on immigrant integration and racial justice brings together three emphases: scholarship that draws on academic theory and rigorous research, data that provides information structured to highlight the process of immigrant integration over time, and engagement that seeks to create new dialogues with government, community organizers, business and civic leaders, immigrants and the voting public to advance immigrant integration and racial equity.

    Economic Inclusion & Climate Equity

    In the area of economic inclusion, we at ERI advance academic theory and practical applications linking economic growth, environmental quality, and civic health with bridging of racial and other gaps; produce accessible and actionable data and analysis through the data tools; and establish research partnerships to deepen and advance the dialogue, planning, and actions around racial equity, environmental justice, and the built environment.

    Social Movements & Governing Power

    ERI’s work in the area of governing power includes: conducting cross-disciplinary studies of today’s social movements, supporting learning and strategizing efforts to advance dialogues among organizers, funders, intermediaries, evaluators, and academics, and developing research-based social change frameworks and tools to inform—and be informed by—real-world, real-time efforts towards a vision of deep change.

    Publications Directory

    In 2020, the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) and the USC Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII) merged to form the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI).

    The full list of publications published under our previous and current names can be found in our publications directory.

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