Since the 1960s, guaranteed income has been seen as a way to help communities of color, women and LGBTQ+ people. Each of those groups still faces large pay disparities in an economy built primarily to support white men. 

For eight years, researchers have been quietly putting together the largest, most comprehensive study on programs that give people a monthly stream of cash—no strings attached. Over time, does that income transform people’s lives? The data is now in. Right away, the data clearly showed that cash helped people spend more on their basic needs.