SWC’s Fast Five

We’re not going back to the office but the Fed is trying to get us back to work, other people of color push back against discrimination, private data made public lets people see the flood risk of houses and babies take on the fight against poverty.

So, here’s this week’s Fast Five:

1 Back to the office? Not so fast.

Business owners regularly reviewing infection and hospitalization rates among other data points push pause on return to office. With all of those indicators, says one, “It’s not a tough call, on balance, to keep people safe and at home.”

2 Other people of color fight back against discrimination.

The climate of racial reckoning that has emerged in the United States since George Floyd’s death has reinvigorated Native Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos and other people of color to fight back against the racism and discrimination they also have experienced for decades.

3

Realtor.com adds flood risk to housing data.

As Hurricane Laura devastates the Gulf Coast this week, realtor.com becomes the first major real estate website to show flood risk. This follows the June publication by First Street of nationwide flood risk information for millions of properties. Realtor.com publishes First Street’s scoring of 1 – 10, with 1 being the least flood risk, 10 the most, alongside FEMA’s flood designation for every property.

4 The Fed will let inflation rise.

The Federal Reserve Thursday announced historic plans to change how it targets inflation, effectively allowing prices to run higher in order to accelerate growth and bring down unemployment.

5

The future of anti-poverty – baby bonds

A plan would set aside money at birth for children in most families, giving them a financial lift when they reach 18 and enter adulthood.