"How Obama can help heal the race gap in America," an opinion piece by Alan Jenkins, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Opportunity Agenda, appeared recently in the Christian Science Monitor.

Jenkins argues that in order for our economy to recover, we need strategies that take into account the unique obstacles facing diverse populations:

A recovery strategy designed to work in New York, North Carolina, or Florida will not equally lift the prospects of Michigan, Louisiana, or California. Similarly, communities of color facing unique challenges – from concentration in hard-hit manufacturing and service sectors to persisting patterns of discrimination and segregation, to language and cultural barriers – cannot equally access initiatives that don’t explicitly consider their particular circumstances.

Thus, while the president is surely correct in responding to critics by explaining that his job “is to be president of the whole country,” he has been wrong in saying that “a rising tide lifts all boats.”

Read more at csmonitor.com.