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New York, NY
Rinku Sen is the President and Executive Director of the Applied Research Center (ARC) and Publisher of Colorlines.com.
A leading figure in the racial justice movement for the last twenty years, Rinku has positioned ARC as the movement's national home for media, research and activism. She has extensive practical experience on the ground, with expertise in race, feminism, immigration, economic justice, philanthropy and community organizing. Over the course of her career, Rinku has woven together journalism and organizing to further social change.
Rinku is the Vice Chair of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, and is a Boardmember of the Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity. She is the Chair of the Media Consortium and sits on the boards for Restaurant Opportunities Center-United and Working America. Additionally, she is a Prime Movers fellow through the Hunt Alternatives Fund.
Rinku is a highly sought-after speaker on a broad range of racial justice topics. She is the author of The Accidental American: Immigration and Citizenship in the Age of Globalization and Stir It Up: Lessons in Community Organizing. Rinku has regular columns at Colorlines, the Huffington Post, and Jack and Jill Politics. Additionally, her commentary and work has been featured in Forbes, The San Francisco Chronicle, Market Watch, International Business Times, TomPaine.com, AlterNet, Racialicious, The Root, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, and the Windy City Times, among other media outlets.
Read Rinku's full bio.
Rinku tweets at @ARC_RinkuSen.
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This 9/11, Let’s All Take Responsibility for Ending a Summer of Hate
by Rinku Sen, Fekkak Mamdouh on September 9 2010, 1:45PM
A few loud voices are spewing hate, but unless the rest of us stand up and counter it they will set the tone for us all.
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Five Workplace Reforms to Fight for This Labor Day
by Rinku Sen on September 3 2010, 1:39PM
More workers than you think don’t enjoy the protection of labor laws. A look at their jobs, and the burgeoning movements to get them rights.
Topics: Economy
Domestic Workers Lead the Way to 21st Century Labor Rights
by Rinku Sen on September 2 2010, 11:31AM
An historic New York victory demonstrates what today’s labor movement needs to look like.
Topics: Economy
How Breitbart Won — and Why We Must Rethink “Racism”
by Rinku Sen on July 23 2010, 2:12PM
The lesson of Shirley Sherrod is we must stop talking about racism as a personality problem.
Topics: Media, Shirley Sherrod
A Letter to ColorLines Subscribers
by Rinku Sen on April 1 2010, 12:00PM
Learn how you can join us in relaunching ColorLines and the options for your remaining print subscription.
Topics: The NEW ColorLines
What Progressives Must Learn from the ACORN Debacle
by Rinku Sen on March 25 2010, 12:00PM
The right’s successful attack on ACORN should teach us a plain, bracing lesson: By challenging entrenched power, we make ourselves targets. Be ready to fight.
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Welcome to ColorLines: Kai Wright
by Rinku Sen on February 11 2010, 10:18AM
I am delighted to announce that Kai Wright, writer, editor, and author of Drifting Toward Love will be joining the Applied Research Center and ColorLines as our Editorial Director. Kai has written extensively for ColorLines, and his pieces include The…
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by Rinku Sen on December 16 2009, 1:24PM
Originally published on The Huffington Post Negotiations have resumed in Copenhagen after a walkout by the African delegation on Monday. African governments were concerned with the lack of commitment by rich country governments to reducing their own emissions. This follows…
Topics: Economy, Environment, Global Affairs, News Items, Race and Recession
by Rinku Sen on November 18 2009, 1:00PM
In the 1990s I was Co-Director at the Center for Third World Organizing and lucky enough for several years to have Andrea Lewis, who died of an apparent heart attack over the weekend, as my colleague. Andrea was a senior…
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Obama Should Have Turned It Down
by Rinku Sen on October 9 2009, 10:31AM
Obama’s winning the Nobel Peace Prize reminds me of this clothing commercial in which a man whose face you can’t see is at an interview or on a date. He’s told that he has horrible work history or got…
Topics: Global Affairs
Rinku Sen and Billy Parish: Young, Green, and Broke
by Rinku Sen on October 6 2009, 8:08AM
This piece was coauthored with Billy Parish of the Energy Action Coalition; it originally appeared at the Huffington Post. Last week, the Labor Department reported that youth unemployment stands at 18.2%, nearly twice the national average of 9.8%. The percentage…
Topics: Economy, Environment
by Rinku Sen on July 16 2009, 11:00AM
Originally Published on The Women’s Media Center blog As a brown-skinned immigrant who has spent 25 years working for racial justice, I owe a good deal of my life to the legacy of the NAACP. So I’ve watched and attended…
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Who Killed the Why? Buy Andrea Batista Schlesinger’s Book to Find Out
by Rinku Sen on June 10 2009, 10:12AM
Andrea Batista Schlesinger, a featured speaker at Facing Race 2008 and an ARC boardmember, has written her first book, The Death of Why: The Decline of Questioning and the Future of Democracy. The ability to inquire deeply is the lifeblood…
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ARC is Picking up Steam for Racial Justice, Get Your Friends Onboard
by Rinku Sen on May 14 2009, 9:06AM
It is with much enthusiasm that I write to you today. The Applied Research Center, ColorLines Magazine and its blog, RaceWire, are gaining ground in spreading and popularizing racial justice. We are proud and excited to share some of our…
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You can expect some changes around here.
by Rinku Sen on March 11 2009, 12:00PM
After 12 years, ColorLines begins the transition from print to online magazine. Here, publisher Rinku Sen explains the changes.
Topics: Arts & Culture
Changing the Immigration System for Immediate Improvement
by Rinku Sen on February 12 2009, 7:27AM
Yesterday, the Washington Post reported on the Migration Policy Institute’s list of 36 recommendations on immigration policy that the Obama Administration can and should take up. These changes – stopping to reassess the border fence and ending the criminal prosecution…
Topics: Immigration
Preemptive Love Isn’t Really Love
by Rinku Sen on January 20 2009, 2:01PM
The part of today’s swearing-in that remains clear, hours after the event, is a line from Elizabeth Alexander’s poem. I’m not a big on poetry – I’m too plot-oriented and speedy, and the stillness required to enjoy most poetry generally…
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Rinku Sen’s Facing Race Conference Opening Remarks
by Rinku Sen on November 18 2008, 8:33AM
Continue to second part of the video and a transcript of the speech Welcome to Facing Race 2008 Last week, like many of you, I celebrated the election of the first person of color as President of the United…
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This Immigration Cycle Kills People
by Rinku Sen on October 13 2008, 3:00PM
Today, the New York Times reported on rising hate crimes against immigrants in Italy. A 19-year-old African who had been raised there was beaten to death by two bar proprietors over a package of cookies. This latest incident, after…
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Blogging from the Book Tour: Asking New Immigration Questions
by Rinku Sen on September 22 2008, 3:18PM
Editor’s note: Rinku Sen and Fekkak Mamdouh are in bookstores in the Bay Area, Seattle, and Portland, OR this week discussing their book, The Accidental American. As we travel around with the book, I’m fascinated that at every event,…
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