UC Santa Cruz report details socioeconomic challenges for Black populations in Monterey, San Benito counties

Compared to other racial groups, Black residents of Monterey and San Benito counties face higher rent burdens, higher incarceration rates and lower levels of education, among other findings, according to a report published last month by UC Santa Cruz researchers. 

Rosalyn Green, founder of the Monterey County Black Caucus, which supports Black residents through mentorship and economic development, worked with the researchers. She told Lookout she’s long felt the need for a report to demonstrate local lived experiences. 

“The Monterey County Black Caucus knew that while we had countless personal stories about racial inequities in our community, we needed hard data to push for real policy changes,” she said. “Too often, Black communities are made invisible in policy discussions because there’s a lack of localized data. We initiated this report to document and analyze the conditions Black residents face, creating a foundation for action.” 

The researchers, Chris Benner and Gabriella Alvarez, say this report underlines the need for implementing programs and policies that improve the social and economic well-being of Black residents of the Central Coast. 

The report, officially released on Jan. 20 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the day of President Donald Trump’s second inauguration – comes amid the new administration’s attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (or DEI) programs. The report is titled, “A Foundation for Change: Understanding African American Community Conditions in Monterey and San Benito Counties.” 

Benner, a UCSC environmental studies and sociology professor, said despite the Trump administration’s efforts, he feels “more committed to a racial equity agenda.” 

“DEI is under such attack at the moment, and I keep in mind that DEI, in and of itself, is not the goal, right?” he said. “The goal is creating prosperity for our country and really transforming a history of slavery and inequality that is an important part of our history that has undermined well-being for all of us. 

“We need to transform that,” he added, “and addressing racial equity is a key part of doing that.” 

The report, which looks at data from Monterey and San Benito counties, found that the median income of African American residents in those counties is $41,291, or just 75% of the median income of non-Hispanic white residents. Black residents have the highest poverty levels, with 16.5% of Black residents in the counties living below the poverty line. To compare, 14.5% of Latinos and 6.4% of non-Hispanic white residents live below the poverty line. 

The researchers also found that:

• 44% of Black residents in the counties are homeowners – the lowest of the racial groups. 
• 56% of Black renters experience rent burdens.
• Black workers have the longest commute times.

For researcher Alvarez, the housing conditions and commute times are some of the most consequential factors. 

“This would just play tremendously into people’s ability to not only just have a good quality of life, but their ability to generate income, spend time in the community, spend money in the community,” she said. “Also just [to] be happy community members in our area and feel stable in the region.” 

Benner and Alvarez said this study is an ongoing area of research. They plan to do more surveys and interviews with Black residents in the counties to better understand the history that led to the economic circumstances of today. 

For example, Benner said after the former U.S. Army post Fort Ord closed down in 1994, the closure and loss of jobs had a large impact on the Black population, many of whom left the area. 

“When Fort Ord was shut down as the largest military base closure in that round of base closures in the ’90s it left a huge economic hole in the region,” he said. “It led to a large number of African Americans leaving and an economic hole for the African American community overall.” 

The Black population peaked in Monterey County in 1990 at nearly 23,000, and after the closure of Fort Ord in 1994, the population steadily declined to under 10,000 in 2020. The population increased slightly since then to about 13,000, about 3% of the county population of 439,000, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

Benner said the team did the report on Monterey and San Benito counties because of the partnerships they’ve been developing with local organizations there in recent years and funding that became available through that work.

As part of an initiative, a team from the UCSC Institute for Social Transformation has been doing research and skill-building to help support inclusive economic development in Salinas and Monterey County. The Institute for Social Transformation, of which Benner is the co-founding director, is a center of staff and researchers who work with community partners and produce research focused on creating social change.  

As part of their work, Benner and Alvarez partnered with the Salinas Inclusive Economic Development Initiative, and are one of about 14 organizations that are involved. Benner said the UCSC team received a two-year, $650,000 grant from the James Irvine Foundation to fund its staff researchers to produce reports like this and support its other work in the Salinas initiative. 

The James Irvine Foundation is a private, independent foundation that provides grants to health care, education and community-service organizations in California to help low-income workers access economic opportunities. 

Benner and Alvarez said they’re interested in doing a Santa Cruz County report once they have the funding and connections with local organizations. They said they’re unaware of any similar research focusing on Black residents of Santa Cruz County.

He added that while the report hasn’t been officially presented to elected officials, the report was released at a Martin Luther King Jr. celebration in Seaside, where local elected officials were present. 

Benner emphasized that despite the Trump administration’s efforts to make this kind of work more difficult, he feels more driven to continue it. 

“Honestly, in these current circumstances, I think we’re more committed to a racial equity agenda than otherwise, and it’s not causing us to step back from that commitment,” he said. “I think it’s incumbent upon all of us who believe in this country and what this country could be, to be more vocal about the importance of racial equity in this time when it’s under such attack.” 

Green, the Monterey County Black Caucus director, said the new administration in Washington is bringing “a resurgence of racist policies, attacks on voting rights, deportation threats and economic policies that widened racial disparities.” 

This report, she said, is “a reality check: Anti-Black policies aren’t just a national issue; they are happening right here in Monterey County.” 

She said she hopes the report is used to create changes in policy that reduce incarceration rates for Black residents, expand educational and workforce programs, help Black families become homeowners and improve access to health care and mental health services.

“We want decision-makers, community leaders and organizations to use this data to push for justice reinvestment, economic policies that benefit Black residents, and systemic reforms that stop the displacement of our community,” Green said. “This report is just the beginning, now we need action.” 

Read the report below.

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