Jamila Michener
@povertyscholar.bsky.social
24K followers 590 following 160 posts
Prof @Cornell studying: power, poverty, racism, policy (health & housing) |Author: Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism & Unequal Politics |Builder|Believer
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povertyscholar.bsky.social
Yes!! We will let you know when 💯
povertyscholar.bsky.social
Ditto! SO excited about your new book.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
My book w/@profsorelle.bsky.social will be out in January! These ideas have brewed since I interned at Queens Legal Services 20 years ago. The book is for anyone who cares about people, justice, power & democracy. Much more to share more in the coming months!

press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
Uncivil Democracy
How the civil legal system undermines the political lives of marginalized communities
press.princeton.edu
Reposted by Jamila Michener
equitablegrowth.bsky.social
For the #EGEssaySeries, @povertyscholar.bsky.social points to how forces fueling right-wing populism are evident in the housing market and how tenant organizing can be powerful for creating better economic policies and strengthening U.S. democracy.

Read more 🔗: equitablegrowth.org/housing-inse...
povertyscholar.bsky.social
Medicaid turned 60 this week! My piece in Health Affairs Forefront argues that its future "hinges on who has the power to direct its course." Building & organizing power among Medicaid beneficiaries is the path towards transformative change. Read more here 👇🏾
www.healthaffairs.org/content/fore...
The Future Of Medicaid And The Imperative Of Organized Power | Health Affairs Forefront
Though Medicaid saves lives and provides access to health care for millions of people, it has been constrained by the top-down power relations that structure it.
www.healthaffairs.org
povertyscholar.bsky.social
July 4th has never resonated. Too many people remained unfree after the U.S. declared independence & too many would be made unfree as a result of that declaration. Today, as so many devastatingly harmful policies unfold, charting a course towards freedom is unfinished work that depends on us.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
*Update: Deep thanks to those who shared links, contacts, & encouragement. My brother helped find this family temporary housing. The road ahead for them will be hard. For low-income people, being evicted in NYC means navigating a confusing maze of programs that too often demoralize & discourage.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
I don’t normally do this but I am posting w/an ask today. Please read the thread 🧵

My brother took in the family from the apartment across the hall from him last night. They were evicted w/ their 4-month-old. My brother, who has few resources of his own, could not bear to see them on the street.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
Today I am on the hunt for ways to help. Message me if you have suggestions! The family wants to stay together (mother, father, baby). Their stuff is still in the apartment. They’d like to negotiate w/ the landlord to stay if possible. They need housing & a lawyer. This is in Jamaica, Queens (NYC).
povertyscholar.bsky.social
He called me asking what to do. I study poverty & social policy but acute situation are not my forte. I decided to pay for a hotel stay for them for a while so they could look for emergency housing. But we could not even find a nearby hotel with space. They slept at my brother’s place (2/n)
povertyscholar.bsky.social
I don’t normally do this but I am posting w/an ask today. Please read the thread 🧵

My brother took in the family from the apartment across the hall from him last night. They were evicted w/ their 4-month-old. My brother, who has few resources of his own, could not bear to see them on the street.
Reposted by Jamila Michener
sarahgollust.bsky.social
Sadly, must share this again today: Most. People. Don’t. Want. Medicaid. Cuts. And as @povertyscholar.bsky.social and I argue, there could (should) be political repercussions for this undemocratic act.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
During a bleak time (w/massive Medicaid cuts looming), I'm inspired by ordinary people organizing to fight displacement & harm. As @mperezbrower.bsky.social so powerfully writes, democracy hinges on efforts to "transform how power operates in our community."
www.seattletimes.com/opinion/in-r...
In Renton, we’re holding officials accountable and upholding democracy | Op-Ed
Renton residents aren’t just trying to stop an expansion plan. We are trying to transform how power operates in our community.
www.seattletimes.com
povertyscholar.bsky.social
Though some elected officials are no longer even pretending to represent the preferences of their constituents, it remains important to underscore the gaping chasm between what people want (RE: Medicaid) & what is actually happening. Read our piece for more on this democratic disconnect👇🏾
commhsp.bsky.social
Jamila Michener (@povertyscholar.bsky.social) and Sarah Gollust's (@sarahgollust.bsky.social) new opinion piece in Milbank argues that the Medicaid cuts being debated by Congress are undemocratic. Across the political spectrum, Americans support Medicaid—and they would act to protect the program.
milbankfund.bsky.social
In a new Milbank Quarterly guest Opinion, @povertyscholar.bsky.social &
@sarahgollust.bsky.social share public attitudes toward Congress’s proposed Medicaid funding cuts reported in their April 2025 survey.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
Looking forward to this discussion today. Join us.
ericpatashnik.bsky.social
Today at 3pm! Join @povertyscholar.bsky.social (Cornell), Andrea Campbell (MIT), David Adler (RWJF) and me for a webinar on Medicaid's past, present and future at a critical moment in the program's trajectory. Event reg below. 1/2 @rwjf.bsky.social @watsoninstitute.bsky.social @jhppl.bsky.social
povertyscholar.bsky.social
It is a hard, but important time to be thinking and talking collectively about Medicaid. Join us next week (June 12th) for a historically grounded, future facing discussion.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
It is a hard, but important time to be thinking and talking collectively about Medicaid. Join us next week (June 12th) for a historically grounded, future facing discussion.
povertyscholar.bsky.social
I am under no illusion that the elected officials pushing Medicaid cuts care about the facts. But it is still important to state them clearly, publicly, and incessantly: “Work requirements are simply Medicaid cuts by another name. They serve little other purpose."

www.newsweek.com/medicaid-wor...
New Medicaid work requirements "impossible" for people to navigate
Millions of Americans could lose Medicaid coverage because of cutbacks, but experts warn of the legislation's complexity.
www.newsweek.com
povertyscholar.bsky.social
🔥🔥🔥Such a great collab!
povertyscholar.bsky.social
I enjoyed this discussion today. I learned a lot from my fellow panelists (even those I disagreed with). And as moderator, @jerusalem.bsky.social wasn’t afraid to challenge us with tough questions. I find that approach super generative.
equitablegrowth.bsky.social
The next thing to think about is: What are the policies and practices that strengthen democracy and the economy?

Panelists @timbartik.bsky.social, @adamdean.bsky.social, @cmehta3.bsky.social, @povertyscholar.bsky.social and moderator @jerusalem.bsky.social explore potential solutions.

#EssaySeries
povertyscholar.bsky.social
The false dichotomy is historically enduring (predating even the “founding”) and it has survived many different iterations of word choice. The idea itself —that we must decide who is disadvantaged enough to access public resources—almost inevitably produces harm relative to more universal approaches
povertyscholar.bsky.social
We cannot harm those deemed “undeserving” without also harming many who are supposedly “deserving.” These false dichotomies serve only the most wealthy/elite. MLK was on point when he said that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” We ignore that wisdom to our own peril.
queenofthesouth.bsky.social
My daughter’s speech therapist went out of business because Medicaid reimbursement rates were too low. We do not have Medicaid. I’m going to keep posting this until people understand that when Medicaid gets cut *everyone* loses services.