Welcome
journalist. author.
Welcome
journalist. author.
Oscar Perry Abello is a NYC-based journalist covering responses to Economic Injustice in Cities.
Writing
writing
Writing
writing
Published by Island Press in February 2025, Oscar’s first book The Banks We Deserve: Reclaiming Community Banking for a Just Economy draws on a near-decade of his reporting on economic justice for Next City, an independent, nonprofit, digital newsroom covering solutions for social, racial and environmental justice in cities.
The number of community banks in the US has been steadily declining for decades, giving way to big banks that have little connection to the communities they claim to serve. The massive, unprecedented shift toward such a highly concentrated banking sector has weakened our ability to take action at a community level and leaves many people, especially those who have been historically marginalized, without access to capital.
The Banks We Deserve argues that community banking has a crucial role to play in addressing urgent social challenges, from creating a more racially just economy to preparing for a changing climate. At their best, community banks unleash the agency and aspirations of the communities that establish them. The author challenges people working on racial justice, community development, or addressing climate change to start more community banks or credit unions as part of their work, while also calling for policies and regulatory reforms that will help tilt the landscape back in favor of community banking.
The Banks We Deserve tells the stories of new community banks — like Adelphi Bank, in Columbus, Ohio, the first new Black bank in 20 years; or Walden Mutual Bank in Concord, New Hampshire, the first new mutual bank since 1973 and the first chartered specifically to finance a more sustainable food system; or Climate First Bank, in St. Petersburg, Florida, which has grown exponentially since opening for business in 2021. He hopes these stories inspire others to take some of these same daunting-but-not-impossible steps. For a community or industry that is being ignored by big banks, the idea of starting up a new bank or credit union rarely figures as an option. In The Banks We Deserve, Oscar shows advocates, organizers, and innovators that it can be done, that it is being done, and describes a path to support more community banks and credit unions.
Next City
Senior Economic Justice Correspondent
March 2019-present
Editor
February 2018-March 2019
Contributing Writer
August 2016-February 2018
Equitable Cities Fellow
August 2015-August 2016
Currently reporting two enterprise or news-driven stories per month, 2000-3000 words each, plus occasional long-form features (4,000+ words). Cultivating sources and conducting interviews by phone or in person. Specific topics covered include community development finance, minority- and women-owned enterprise lending and technical assistance, public procurement, worker-owned businesses, urban planning and anti-gentrification strategies, participatory budgeting, cooperatives, community land trusts and other community-owned real estate models.
Freelance journalist
December 2011-present
See my bylines at:
Since 2011, my reporting has appeared online or in print for publications such as the Phildealphia Inquirer, Yes! Magazine, Shelterforce, Impact Alpha, Fast Company, B the Change Media, and NextBillion. Topics covered include community and economic development, public banking, affordable housing, impact investing, and social enterprises.
Awards
awards
Awards
awards
Selected by Planetizen as one of the top 100 people actively working to have an impact on urban planning & cities today.
One of over 200 leaders from all over the United States and 9 different countries selected for their work, accomplishments, and ability to transform ideas into action.
One of seven in the inaugural cohort of fellows selected to pursue writing projects in architectural criticism. A partnership of the Urban Design Forum and The Architectural League of New York.
Bio
bio
Bio
bio
Oscar Perry Abello is a journalist covering alternative economic models and policies in cities across the country. He is currently senior economic justice correspondent for Next City, an independent, not-for-profit, online publication covering cities from the lens of social, racial and environmental justice. His writing has also appeared in Yes! Magazine, City & State New York, Impact Alpha, Shelterforce, and other outlets.
Oscar is a child of immigrants descended from the former colonial subjects of the Spanish and U.S. imperial regimes in the Philippines. He was born in New York City, and raised in the inner-ring suburbs of Philadelphia. He has a bachelor's degree from Villanova University, where he majored in economics and minored in peace and justice studies. He spent several years embedded in the international development industry before transitioning into journalism full-time in 2015. He currently lives in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City with his domestic partner and the two most photogenic kitties in the world.
Race & Gender Equity
Race & Gender Equity
Representation matters.
Since July 2015, I have committed to informally track the demographics of the sources whom I quote in my reporting. It is well documented that white men are over-represented as sources in the media, even mission-oriented media such as public radio. Check back here for occasional updates on how I’m doing.
