An Economic Justice Framework
When seeking financial wellness, many survivors are faced with difficult obstacles imposed by our economic system. Our project seeks to raise awareness of the fact that many times what’s broken isn’t the person, but the economic structures in which our clients are expected to operate.
As Prosperity Now explains:
"For decades now, the pervasive mindset across the country has been that, if poor people just had the knowledge to make sound financial decisions, they could lift themselves out of their financial despair. The idea was that, with knowledge, low-income people and people of color would be motivated, have an “a-ha” moment about how to change their 'destructive' behaviors."
However, time and time again, research has shown that financial literacy by itself has little effect on changing people's financial behavior.
That is, even if someone attends all the financial literacy courses in town…
- if they are living below the minimum wage,
- if they are unable to afford safe housing,
- if they are unseen by financial institutions, and
- if larger structural barriers – such as policies that deter saving, lack of affordable housing stock, discriminatory practices in lending and neighborhood segregation – continue to be at play…
... They will not be able to overcome barriers that impede their ability to thrive financially and accumulate wealth."
Our project aims to shed light on these structural barriers and help dismantle the myth that financial "know-how" is the only thing that low-income people and people of color need in order to achieve financial wellness. The hope is that an economic justice framework will help us understand poverty in more productive ways and help alleviate feelings of financial shame which have been known to hinder the process of healing financial trauma.
Filling In a Gap
Our project aims to fill a gap by helping service providers, financial educators, and other advocates understand the role that trauma plays in IPV victims' relationship to money and the ways in which trauma can undercut their ability to achieve financial wellness.
