The demolition of the Cabrini-Green housing complex. Photo by ThinkStock
GCI Director Teresa Córdova advocates utilizing new policies and innovation for ending economic inequalities in an op-ed for Crain’s. She moderated a panel on economic development at Crain’s Future of Chicago summit on June 15.
The Great Cities Institute reports tell us that Chicago is still experiencing the impacts of the rapid deindustrialization that hit the city hard, particularly since the mid-1970s. Inequalities have been exacerbated—especially those tied to segregation and concentrated joblessness. We know the range of social and economic ills that accompany high rates of joblessness, and we know that violence is one of them.
Neglect of this issue of job loss has consequences, and we can’t hide from it anymore.
Did we really think that there would not be severe long-term impacts of deindustrialization without replacing those jobs with similar high-paying jobs that provide a pathway to the middle class? The task now is to share the responsibility to reverse the damages of political and economic policies that allowed this to happen—and, at this very moment, to seek the economic policies that ensure all residents access to employment opportunities.
