SDSN is glad to share its newest report: In the Red: the US Failure to Deliver on a Promise of Racial Equality. It extends SDSN USA’s recent report, Never More Urgent, which explores the policy choices underlying racial inequality in the US. This index seeks to explore the following question: How far are states from achieving the SDGs, if their progress is measured by the experiences of those who have been least served by development progress?

This project builds upon SDSN’s previous work, analyzing how well the US is delivering the SDGs at the state and city level. These efforts are among the first to empirically describe the connection between racial equality and the SDGs in the US. In the Red uses the transformative “Leave No One Behind” Agenda which requires cities, states, and national governments to eradicate racism, discrimination, and inequality that undermine the realization of a sustainable future.

Results show that on average, white communities have outcomes approximately three times better than the least served racial community. Black and Indigenous communities are most often left behind in the US, although availability of data varies widely. The index adds to mounting evidence of a lack of consistently updated, racially disaggregated data in the US.

The launch of the report was held on May 5th, 2021. See the event summary and a recording of event, which includes a project overview and panel discussion.

For more information on SDSN USA's Diversity, Equity, and Justice initiatives, click here.

For more information on SDSN USA's work tracking progress on the SDGs in the US, click here.

To contact us, please email usa@unsdsn.org.