In the past few decades, the platform economy has shaped how people work, play, buy and sell things, and connect with others. I use interview and survey-based methods to research how people understand and experience these online interactions at the nexus of consumerism, employment and health disparities.

Peer-Reviewed, Coauthored Publications

Figure 1 shows that one's understanding of the legacy of racism shapes support for reparations in Detroit, and the impact of one's understanding differs among Black Detroiters (solid line) and White Detroiters (dotted line). 

Crafting Democratic Futures: Understanding Political Conditions and Racialized Attitudes Toward Black Reparations

RSF: Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences (2024). Volume 10, Issue 3. 

Authors: Kamri Hudgins, Erykah Benson, Sydney Carr, Jasmine Simington, Zoe Walker, Jessica Cruz, Vincent Hutchings, Earl Lewis, Mara Cecilia Ostfeld, Alford Young, Jr. 

Study Summary: Through a collaboration with Crafting Democratic Futures,  the Black Truth Project, the Center for Racial Justice, and the Detroit Metro Area Communities study, the study team seeks to understand what shapes support for and opposition to reparative policies for Black Americans. The team finds that exposing respondents to information about the reasons for reparations does not shift public support. Instead, one's overall awareness of racial inequality that one has grown over time appears to be a key factor in building support for reparations. 

📝Read Open Access Article

Public Reports

U-M Center for Racial Justice

Using survey-based quantitative analysis, I write reports about perceptions of racial and economic inequality through the U-M Center for Racial Justice and regularly communicate findings to news media outlets. These reports are publicly accessible through the University of Michigan. 

Reparations

Forty acres and a mule? How Flint residents believe the government should repay Black Americans. 2023. Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

Authors: Erykah Benson & Jasmine Simington 

A majority of Black Flint residents, the intended beneficiaries of the reparations policies under consideration, support cash payments (73%). However, an even greater proportion of Black residents (78%) support reparations in the form of financial assistance for buying or improving a home, financial support for postsecondary education (77%), or financial support for Black businesses (75%).📝 Read Report


Collective Remembrance and Detroiters' Views Toward Racial Equity. 2023. Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy 

Authors: Erykah Benson & Jasmine Simington 

While the majority of Detroiters support reparations, we observe a significant relationship between an individual's support for reparations and their recognition of historic and ongoing harms against Black Americans among residents in the City of Detroit. 📝 Read Report


The Electoral Impact of Racial Reckoning. 2022. Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy 

Authors: Erykah Benson & Jasmine Simington 

Our analysis finds most Detroiter intend to vote in the upcoming election, but those who are uncertain about voting, or unlikely to vote, may be motivated to turn out this November by a candidate’s support for reparations. Young Black residents were particularly likely to say they would be more likely to vote as a result of a candidate’s support for reparations. 📝 Read Report

Economic Well-Being

The Economic Well-Being of Detroit Residents Two Years Into the COVID-19 Pandemic. 2022. Detroit Metro Area Communities Study. 

Authors: Lydia Wileden & Erykah Benson

A survey report exploring self-reported financial well-being among Detroit residents two years after the COVID-19 pandemic, including the impact of housing, utility costs, healthcare, and more. 📝 Read Report