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Black Lives Texas

Policy and Action with Annika Olson

Season 2, Ep. 3

Annika is the Assistant Director of Policy Research at IUPRA, where she serves as the liaison to the Texas Legislative Black Caucus, community members, and policy makers at all levels. She received a dual Master’s degree in Psychology and Public Policy at Georgetown University and her Bachelors in Psychology from the Commonwealth Honors College at UMass Amherst. Annika previously served as an AmeriCorps member with at-risk youth in rural New Mexico and Austin, Texas.


Learn more about the mission and work of IUPRA:

https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra


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  • 5. Housing, Migration, and the Black Middle Class

    40:08
    In the season finale Tracie and Ricardo sit down to discuss housing and population migration with recent Texas transplant Roger Deveaux. They also sit down with assistant director of policy research at IUPRA Annika Olson to discuss affordable housing and racially restrictive covenants. Learn more about IUPRAhttps://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/Learn more about housing and racially restrictive covenants: https://utexas.app.box.com/v/deed-restrictions https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/23/opinions/millennials-almost-impossible-to-afford-home-olson/index.html https://www.expressnews.com/opinion/commentary/article/To-build-a-better-America-raise-minimum-wage-16346131.php https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/Opinion-Remove-unenforceable-racist-restrictions-15644640.php
  • 4. Black Middle Class with Dr. Mary Pattillo

    35:53
    Tracie and Ricardo are joined by professor and author Dr. Mary Pattillo. Dr. Pattillo is a Professor of Sociology and Chair of the Department of African American Studies at Northwestern University. Dr. Pattillo's areas of interest include race and ethnicity, the black middle class, policy, inequality, urban sociology, and qualitative methods. Her works include, "Black Picket Fences" and "Black on the Block". You can learn more about her and her work here. Email us your thoughts or voice memos: blacklivestexaspodcast@gmail.comLearn more about IUPRAhttps://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/
  • 3. Suburbanization and Education in the Black Middle Class

    53:18
    Ricardo and Tracie are joined by Autumn Arnett and Natosha Daniels for a discussion about schools, neighborhoods, education, and suburbanization. Autumn and Natosha both do advocacy and engagement around education in Central Texas. They share a bit about their personal experiences as parents and other insights about class and community engagement. Email us your thoughts or voice memos: blacklivestexaspodcast@gmail.comLearn more about IUPRAhttps://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/
  • Special Coverage: The Texas Winter Storm

    42:31
    Winter Storm Uri brought Texas to a stand still and caused major damage across the state. Hosts Tracie Lowe and Ricardo Lowe explore some of the factors that lead to the wide spread power outages, what Texans can expect with future weather events. They also talked with fellow Texans about what can be done at the community level, and what accountability is still needed. Guests: Greg Casar Kiah Collier Dr. Charles JacksonDr. Brandon JonesCaitlin SmithResources/Articles:IUPRA - "Texas Winter Storm: A Look at Energy Insecurity Across the State" Texas Tribune - "Everyday Texans overlooked in state lawmakers' response to power outages during winter storm"ProPublica - "Power Companies Get Exactly What They Want" Learn more about IUPRA: https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/Email us at: BlackLivesTexasPodcast@gmail.com
  • Special Coverage: Policing in Schools

    02:04:39
    This episode is a broadcast of an online panel hosted by IUPRA about Policing and Schools. This Opportunity Forum offers a look at how Black Youth are disproportionately impacted by policing in school, and what that means for Austin and the greater Central Texas community. The panel includes:  Brion Oaks, Chief Equity Officer, City of AustinKevin Foster Ph.D., School Board Member, Austin Independent School DistrictAndrew Hairston, Director, Justice Education Project, Texas AppleseedNatosha Daniels, Round Rock Black Parents AssociationFarah Muscadin, Director for the City of Austin’s Office of Police OversightAdditional Resources: IUPRA Issue Brief: Law Enforcement in Texas Schools  https://utexas.app.box.com/s/s3xcskx9scxc2gnuhwi8lfpy8prppmy5#Law%20Enforcement%20in%20Texas%20Schools ACLU Report: Use of Force in Texas Public Schools: The Case for Transparency, Accountability and Decriminalizationhttps://www.aclutx.org/sites/default/files/field_documents/2011UseofForce.pdf Texas Appleseed Report: Texas’ School-to-Prison Pipeline https://www.njjn.org/uploads/digital-library/Texas-School-Prison-Pipeline_Ticketing_Booklet_Texas-Appleseed_Dec2010.pdf Washington Post Education article: Police in schools: Keeping kids safe, or arresting them for no good reason?https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/police-in-schools-keeping-kids-safe-or-arresting-them-for-no-good-reason/2015/11/08/937ddfd0-816c-11e5-9afb-0c971f713d0c_story.html
  • 2. Women in the Black Middle Class

    54:38
    This week host Tracie Lowe is joined by Dr. Tiffany Tillis Lewis an Assistant Vice President for Academic Equity UT Austin, Brandelyn Franks Flunder a Director of the Multicultural Engagement Center at UT Austin and Dr. Kris Marsh an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland. Together they have an open and honest conversation about their personal and professional experiences being women in the Black middle class. Email us your thoughts or voice memos: blacklivestexaspodcast@gmail.comLearn more about IUPRAhttps://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/
  • 1. Housing and Defining the Black Middle Class with Dr. Dickerson

    57:41
    Welcome back to Black Lives Texas. Kicking off our new season Tracie and Ricardo are sitting down with Dr. Mechele Dickerson to talk about methodologies for defining the Black middle class. They also explore the pros and cons of home ownership and what folks should know as they start to explore the current housing market. Learn more about Dr. Dickerson's Work: https://law.utexas.edu/faculty/mechele-dickerson/Email us your thoughts or voice memos: blacklivestexaspodcast@gmail.comLearn more about IUPRAhttps://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/
  • Special Coverage: Post Election 2020 Panel Discussion

    55:24
    In this special episode of Black Lives Texas Mikkel Leveriza, the Grants and Contacts Specialist for IUPRA, sits down with Dr. Tasha Philpot a professor of Government from UT Austin, and Briona Jenkins of Austin Justice Coalition to talk about life in Texas post the 2020 election. They discuss national issues, issues facing Black Texans, as well as policies on the local level in Austin. Learn more about Briona and her work with AJC: https://austinjustice.org/Learn more about Dr. Philpot: https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/government/faculty/profile.php?eid=tsp228Learn more about IUPRA :https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupra/
  • 6. Get to Know Our Hosts: Tracie Lowe and Ricardo Lowe

    44:48
    On this episode our hosts interview each other and we get to know more about Tracie and Ricardo. Dr. Tracie A. Lowe is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin for IUPRA. Her research focuses on the experiences of Black students in higher education with a particular focus on Black women graduate students. Additionally, her research interests include issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education. Ricardo Lowe, Jr. is a Research Associate for IUPRA and Doctoral Student in Applied Demography at UT San Antonio. He served five years as a federal statistician and is well-versed in statistical application and quantitative methods. His research interests are broad, but typically involve suburbanization, maternal health, and education. Learn more about the mission and work of IUPRA:https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/iupraFollow IUPRA on Social Media:https://twitter.com/IUPRAhttps://www.facebook.com/IUPRA