Center for Racial Justice

Publication

Immigration enforcement fears are reshaping daily life for Michigan immigrants, U-M study finds

May 19, 2026

A new report documents widespread immigration enforcement fears among immigrant Michiganders in Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids and Ypsilanti. The report from the University of Michigan's Center for Racial Justice at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public ...

Immigration enforcement fears are reshaping daily life for Michigan immigrants, U-M study finds

News

Fullerton Rico on the hidden hosts of immigration policy

Mar 19, 2026

"When I describe my research, I say that I study love across borders and creative uses of technology," Ford School sociologist Kristina Fullerton Rico said on a recent episode of Grief'd Up. "Over the past 40 years, immigration policies have made it ...

Fullerton Rico on the hidden hosts of immigration policy

News

Ostfeld and Stragand discuss gun violence research in Detroit and lack of institutional trust

Mar 15, 2026

Between 2018 and 2022, firearm homicide rates rose 48% percent for Hispanic communities in Detroit, in contrast to only 22% for white, non-Hispanics. The community continues to face heartbreak and loss in the aftermath of gun violence as institutiona...

Ostfeld and Stragand discuss gun violence research in Detroit and lack of institutional trust

News

Will Virgin Islanders vote? Report reveals major constitutional awareness gap

Mar 10, 2026

A new report from the University of Michigan's Center for Racial Justice and the University of Puerto Rico-Río Piedras examines a critical disconnect in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Most residents believe the territory should ratify its own constitution,...

Will Virgin Islanders vote? Report reveals major constitutional awareness gap

News

Adediran’s ‘Disclosureland’ explores the tension between corporate promises and racial progress

Feb 19, 2026

In the wake of George Floyd's murder in 2020, corporations and institutions across the United States released public statements about race at an unprecedented rate. "We've got work to do" pledges and "#Blackout Tuesday" posts began popping up on comp...

Adediran’s ‘Disclosureland’ explores the tension between corporate promises and racial progress

Policy Matters

Student curated programming to meet the moment

Nov 24, 2025

Each academic year the programming at the Center for Racial Justice (CRJ) looks a little bit different. We aim to create a vibrant, diverse community of racial justice leaders, scholars, and students engaged in social justice work and believe it's cr...

Student curated programming to meet the moment

News

New survey ahead of Sixth Constitutional Convention in the Virgin Islands

Oct 29, 2025

A new public opinion survey will be administered by University of Michigan researchers across the U.S. Virgin Islands in the weeks surrounding the territory’s Sixth Constitutional Convention. The survey will provide an independent read on how Virgin ...

News

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2025-26 visiting fellows

Sep 22, 2025

The Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy, Ayesha B. Hardaway, and Holly Bass as visiting fellows for the 2025-26 academic year. The Visiting Fellows Program, a signature initiative of the Center for Racial...

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2025-26 visiting fellows

News

Ostfeld conducting research on political status in Guam

Sep 10, 2025

Since the end of World War II, the United States has rhetorically championed the principle of “self-determination.” Yet today, more than four million Americans live in U.S. territories whose homelands are excluded from most maps and remain invisible ...

Ostfeld conducting research on political status in Guam

News

U-M report exposes the hidden labor of families supporting formerly incarcerated women

Jun 19, 2025

A new report from the University of Michigan’s Center for Racial Justice at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy sheds light on the essential and largely overlooked role family members play in supporting women after incarceration. Drawing on or...

U-M report exposes the hidden labor of families supporting formerly incarcerated women

News

Trump's 100 days in office: Ford School experts available

Apr 29, 2025

In the first 100 days of his second term, President Donald Trump has unleashed a whirlwind of policy shifts that have sent ripples across the globe. The responses to his administration's actions have ranged from applause to skepticism. Ford School fa...

Trump's 100 days in office: Ford School experts available

Publication

Potential of grocery delivery services to increase food access in Detroit

Apr 8, 2025

New research from the University of Michigan points to potential ways to leverage grocery delivery services to improve food access in Detroit, where 32% of residents live a mile or farther from a full-service grocery store. The analysis from the U-M ...

Potential of grocery delivery services to increase food access in Detroit

News

Ford School to host screening of Oscar nominated documentary SUGARCANE

Mar 13, 2025

The Ford School will host a special screening of Oscar-nominated documentary SUGARCANE at the Michigan Theatre on Monday, April 14, followed by a Q&A with filmmakers Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie. SUGARCANE follows an investigation into the ...

Ford School to host screening of Oscar nominated documentary SUGARCANE

News

Rico comments on Trump policies' impact on immigrant communities

Feb 23, 2025

Center for Racial Justice Postdoctoral Fellow Kristina Fullerton Rico explores what she calls the dangerous implications of President Trump's deportation policy in an essay in The Conversation. Citing extensive social science research on U.S. immigr...

Rico comments on Trump policies' impact on immigrant communities

News

Government suspicion, conspiratorial thinking linked to historical harm in 3 Michigan communities, U-M report finds

Feb 20, 2025

More than half of residents surveyed in three Michigan communities believe significant events occur without public knowledge—a sentiment of government suspicion closely tied to conspiratorial thinking, according to a University of Michigan policy bri...

In Michigan, conspiracy thinking can be rooted in real historic harm

News

Exciting events at the Ford School this January

Jan 10, 2025

The Ford School is pleased to announce an exciting lineup for our January 2025 Policy Talks @ the Ford School series and other special public events hosted with partners from across campus. Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise note...

Exciting events at the Ford School this January

News

Detroit’s reparations task force's slow pace is not a bad thing - Ostfeld

Dec 20, 2024

Ford school professor Mara Ostfeld wrote with coauthors Kamri Hudgins, Erykah Noelle Benson, and Vincent Hutchings, in The Conversation about delays in the release of the Detroit Reparations Task Force report. She explains why it has been difficult f...

Detroit’s reparations task force's slow pace is not a bad thing - Ostfeld

Publication

Talk to him: How a conversation can shape public support for women’s rights

Dec 17, 2024

A single conversation with a close family member may not change a young woman’s views on policies protecting their rights, but it can strongly influence young men’s attitudes. A University of Michigan study found that family opinions heavily shape ma...

Immigration policies: U-M experts can discuss

State & Hill

Spotlights, fall 2024

Dec 17, 2024

Welcome, changemakersThe Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes its third cohort of Visiting Fellows: writer, filmmaker, and community organizer Charlene Carruthers; racial justice lawyer, historian, and organizer Amanda Alexander; ...

News

Making it: Snapshots from the Artist Pay Project explores the financial struggles facing artists

Nov 26, 2024

Chicago-based artist and journalist Makeda Easter explores the financial challenges facing artists across disciplines in her immersive exhibition, Making it: $napshots from The Artist Pay Project, currently displayed at the University of Michigan Ros...

Making it: Snapshots from the Artist Pay Project explores the financial struggles facing artists

In the Media

Ostfeld highlights attitudes in cities with high-immigrant populations

Oct 14, 2024 Michigan Public

Speaking with Michigan Public, the Ford School's Mara Ostfeld discusses results from her recent research on public opinion in Michigan on immigration policy. Ostfeld stated, “U.S.-born residents living in cities with a higher proportion of foreign-bo...

Ostfeld highlights attitudes in cities with high-immigrant populations

News

Transnational grief: Adding depth to Day of the Dead

Oct 9, 2024

Restricted by immigration laws, unauthorized immigrants in the United States face severe challenges, including the inability to visit family members left behind. This "slow violence" becomes most painful during times of death, causing "transnational ...

Transnational grief: Adding depth to Day of the Dead

News

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2024-25 visiting fellows

Sep 26, 2024

The Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes Amanda Alexander, Charlene Carruthers, and Bianca D.M. Wilson as Visiting Fellows for the 2024-25 academic year. The Visiting Fellows Program, a signature initiative of the Center for Racia...

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2024-25 visiting fellows

Publication

Distrust in U.S. healthcare system fuels COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

Sep 20, 2024

New research from the University of Michigan examines how long-standing distrust in the U.S. healthcare system has significantly impacted attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine. The research is led by Celeste Watkins-Hayes, Joan and Sanford Weill Dean...

Distrust in U.S. healthcare system fuels COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

News

Racial and gender bias in U.S. crime victim compensation programs highlighted in new report

Sep 18, 2024

Significant racial and gender disparities exist in U.S. crime victim compensation programs, revealing Black and Indigenous people as well as survivors of gender-based violence face unique challenges in obtaining financial support, according to a new ...

Racial and gender bias in U.S. crime victim compensation programs highlighted in new report

News

Ford School panel examines immigration on the ballot

Sep 17, 2024

The Ford School’s fall event series kicked off with more than 115 people in attendance for Immigration on the Ballot, a panel discussion about the policy landscape and implications for the upcoming election, hosted by the Center for Racial Justice. “...

Ford School panel examines immigration on the ballot

News

Hassan awarded U-M anti-racism grant

Sep 10, 2024

Ford School assistant professor Yousif Hassan has been chosen for a University of Michigan research grant for his work that explores how AI innovations and data can center social justice and address racial and economic inequalities in African societi...

In the Media

A look at Republican efforts to court Black and Latinx voters

Jun 28, 2024 Listen Now: Created Equal on Detroit Public Radio

"Earlier this month, Trump made a campaign stop at 180 Church in Detroit in an attempt to appeal to both Black and Latinx voters. Today on "Created Equal" we're joined by five guests — including Mara Ostfeld, Research Director at the Center for Racia...

State & Hill

Spotlights, spring 2024

Apr 24, 2024

A prescription for equityAs the first city-wide experiment of its kind, Rx Kids provides cash payments for new parents—and new promise for eradicating early childhood poverty. Flint's high child poverty rates came into focus nearly 10 years ago when ...

State & Hill

It’s all about equity

Apr 24, 2024

Liz Gerber sees key role for governments in the transition to electric vehiclesThe Biden administration wants electric vehicles (EVs) to comprise fifty percent of new vehicle sales in just six years. This has required massive investment in our chargi...