Toward a New Project for Equality and Justice—In Housing, and Beyond: A Rejoinder

Abstract

I offer a rejoinder to the five responses to my article, “Beyond Opportunity Hoarding,” generously provided by Professors Bates, Dawkins, Ellen, Greenlee, and Lens. I argue it is imperative we face soberly three central problematics looming over the current debate: a) the enormity and profoundness of America's urban problems; b) the failure of the Opportunity Project to address these problems; and c) the reasons for this failure. I conclude by reiterating the need for an alternative strategy (or a new Project) to advance equality and justice, one built around a robust and large-scale program of Community Wealth Building. I discuss Community Wealth Building's appropriateness as an area of inquiry and engagement for housing researchers and practitioners, and I consider the challenges confronting its feasibility in light of several salient (and hopeful) political and social developments unfolding in contemporary urban America.