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Sick of Being Poor: The Deadly Impacts of Poverty

On Sept. 5, 2018, small-business owner Niki Okuk, who founded Compton, California-based RCO Tires in 2012, explored the way systemic class oppression operates to make and keep people poor, and how this can take its toll on bodies and minds. She recounted the daily challenges and obstacles her employees face in securing affordable housing, reliable transportation, fair treatment by law enforcement and more. Okuk also examined worker-owned cooperative businesses as one way to create greater justice and equity for working people.

Event recap: The Stress of Being Poor

Full video and podcast recordings of the event are available below. You can also download the video here. (Downloading may take several minutes due to the size of the file.)

Podcast available for download:

Video: When Workers Own Companies, The Economy is More Resilient, Niki Okuk’s 2016 presentation at TedX Crenshaw

Additional resources:

Learn about the health equity issues affecting Coloradans at Collective Colorado, a publication of The Colorado Trust.