Jennifer Jones Austin on fighting poverty and its impact on communities of color

FPWA, formerly the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, is an anti-poverty organization in New York City that advocates for policies and initiatives that support New Yorkers living in poverty. The nonprofit looks at ways to raise wages, end wage segregation, enforce pay equity, establish accurate poverty measures and dismantle unjust systems.

FPWA Executive Director and CEO Jennifer Jones Austin will be giving one of the keynote speeches at City & State’s “Economic & Workforce Development Summit” on Thursday. With the event just a few days away, she discusses her nonprofit’s work, helping to lift New Yorkers out of poverty. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Can you tell us a bit about FPWA’s mission?

FPWA is a better than 100-year-old organization that, since its beginnings, has been focused on the disproportionate impact of poverty on people in communities of color. And working to ensure that not only the individuals and families that are vulnerable, but the agencies serving them, as well, are supported to achieve a better life for themselves and to thrive.

What workforce, income or economic policies is FPWA advocating for or working on at the moment?

We are centering on economic security as the North Star for prosperity for individuals and families here in New York City, moving from basic subsistence and just getting by to economic security as the North Star. We are centering on what makes that positive economic security measure, that looks at what it costs to get ahead and stay ahead in New York City, and not just what it costs to get by, and then how that measure helps inform policies – be they workforce policies, be they housing policies, childcare policies — for individuals who are struggling. 

What is the biggest challenge you see New Yorkers facing in their effort to lift themselves out of poverty?

The biggest challenge that we have in New York City and across the nation is that we have for far too long centered on basic needs, subsistence, just getting by. Very often, when we talk about affordability, we talk about “just enough,” but we don’t talk about how “just enough” doesn’t help one weather an economic storm, an economic crisis. “Just enough” doesn’t ensure that you can plan and save for your future. Our biggest challenge is when we just center on what’s needed in the moment. That doesn’t help people who are struggling to actually plan for their futures and achieve a better way of life. 

How can nonprofits, government and the business community work together to increase employment and reduce poverty?

I think it first begins with thinking about how we come to our work and the importance of really striving to do good while doing no further harm. Really looking at what it costs to live with economic security, with dignity, here in New York City, and then developing solutions that drive toward that end goal. Not simply, “Okay, does this person have enough to just not go hungry tonight?”

What is the city doing well on this front? Where does it need to take more action?

I believe the city’s continued focus on how to ensure that families with young children have childcare, their focus on that is important and it’s good, but more needs to be done. I believe that the focus on housing and affordable housing is right, and more needs to be done. So, I believe that the focus is there, but we’ve got to make sure that we’re developing the policies and the solutions that really get at: how do we ensure universal, meaningful childcare that doesn’t actually exacerbate the problem? How do we make sure that we have housing for low- and middle-income New Yorkers that actually helps people to save and to thrive?