Met Council report explores reasons for racial disparities in Twin Cities

Updated 2 p.m. | Posted 5:05 a.m.

Disparities between whites and people of color persist in the Twin Cities metro region even when they share similar demographic characteristics.

When researchers held equal age, immigrant status and English skills, black residents still fared worse than whites when it came to homeownership, employment and hourly wages, according to a report released Tuesday by the Metropolitan Council.

The gap between white and black homeownership rates was especially pronounced. Researchers adjusted for household income and other factors, bringing the black homeownership rate from about 25 percent to 48 percent. But that figure was still well below the 78 percent rate for whites.

The report acknowledges that demographic differences are partly responsible for racial and ethnic disparities, but those gaps remained even when those demographic differences were removed.

Among the report's conclusions: Race and ethnicity — rather than other demographic differences — are driving the racial disparities in the region.

State leaders have increasingly drawn attention to Minnesota's huge racial gaps, which by some measurements are among the largest in the nation. The economic inequities paint a grim picture for the state, given that people of color are the fastest-growing segment of the future workforce.

Forecasts from the Met Council predict that by 2040, people of color will make up more than 40 percent of the Twin Cities population.

In his State of the State speech last month, Gov. Mark Dayton called the disparities "terrible" and "unacceptable."

He followed those remarks with a supplemental budget proposal of spending $100 million out of the state's $900 million projected budget surplus to lift the economic prospects for Minnesotans of color. He has suggested steering the money toward programs focusing on homeownership, workforce training and college-student retention, among other initiatives.

"This report underscores again the urgent need for action to reduce the racial disparities in our state," Dayton said in a statement Tuesday. "The inequities afflicting Minnesotans of color in education, income, employment, and housing require additional state investments immediately."

Last week, a coalition of community leaders announced what they called the "United Black Legislative Agenda," calling for a new $75 million capital fund for black-owned businesses and a host of policy reforms.

Census data showed household income for blacks fell by 14 percent from 2013 to 2014, but it's not entirely clear why.

The Met Council's report findings are significant, said Met Council Member Gary Cunningham, who used to review discrimination complaints for the city of Minneapolis.

"If this data was presented to me in that role, I would say it would be a prima-facie case that discrimination is occurring in the marketplace," he told reporters.

Policies that encouraged segregation over time helped contribute to today's racial economic divide, he said.

The data, however, don't fully explain what causes the disparities, said Minnesota State Demographer Susan Brower.

"That's not to say there's not racial discrimination going on. I think it's very likely that there is," she said. "But this report doesn't have the data it needs to answer that specific of a question."

Longitudinal studies could dive deeper into what's factoring into the disparities, she added.