Joint Center President Spencer Overton Gives Keynote Talk on the Black Rural South and the Future of Work with Local Mississippi Leaders

On August 9, Spencer was a keynote speaker at One Voice Mississippi Black Leadership Institute in Tunica, Mississippi. During the event, Spencer presented on the Joint Center’s current “Future of Work and the Black Rural South” research to over 25 local elected and emerging leaders.

After quickly reviewing the role of Black enslaved persons in establishing U.S. economic dominance, Spencer explained how the significant rate of displacement through automation combined with negative job growth could result in increased unemployment, poverty, and racial inequality in the Black Rural South. Click here for a 4-page summary of the work with graphs.

The Joint Center surveyed conference participants on potential solutions and obtained significant feedback.

Other conference speakers included Congresswoman Maxine Waters and NAACP President Derrick Johnson.