nick otto

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Universal Basic Income: Trying to save a city

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A pedes...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A pedestrian is seen walking past a vacant building in downtown Stockton.(Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: Lorrine...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: Lorrine Paradela poses for a photograph in Stockton, California. Paradela, a 45-year-old single mother is one of the 125 Stockton residents who received a monthly cash disbursement as a part of of the universal basic income program started by Stockton’s former Mayor Michael Tubbs . (Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7... city. (Photo by Nick Otto/AFP)

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7: Michael Tubbs, the Mayor of Stockton, California poses for a photograph at his office. Mayor Tubbs with the help of the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration implemented an18 month trial of Universal Basic Income for 125 residents of his city. (Photo by Nick Otto/AFP)

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7...ncome. (Photo by Nick Otto/AFP)

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7: A homeless encampment is seen near a dried up river bed in Stockton, California. The city went bankrupt in 2012 but has been recovering and recently began an 18 month trial run of universal basic income. (Photo by Nick Otto/AFP)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A skate...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A skateboarder is seen riding across an empty street in downtown Stockton.(Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A mural...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A mural by Brandan Odums shows shows Jasmine Dellafosse, a local organizer, wearing shirt with the likeness of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The city commissioned artists to paint murals in the center of town, celebrating basic income as the next phase of the civil rights struggle advanced by Dr. King. (Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 6: A man p...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 6: A man pushes his bicycle across a dried up river bed that is lined with homeless camps on the edge of downtown Stockton. The city went bankrupt in 2012 but had seen a recovery thanks in part to an initiative to begin a universal basic income program. (Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A motor...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A motorcyclist is seen riding past derelict old buildings in downtown Stockton.(Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A bicyc...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 5: A bicyclist is seen riding through an empty downtown Stockton.(Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 6: A woman...k Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 6: A woman crosses a large road on the edge of downtown Stockton. The city went bankrupt in 2012 but had seen a recovery thanks in part to an initiative to begin a universal basic income program. (Photo by Nick Otto for the Washington Post)

STOCKTON, CA - APRIL 6: RV

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7: A pedestrian walks through downtown Stockton. The city went bankrupt in 2012 but has been recovering and recently began an 18 month trial run of universal basic income. (Photo by Nick Otto/AFP)

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7... where participants in the city

STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA-FEBRUARY 7: A mother and son walk through one of the neighborhoods of Stockton where participants in the city

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Universal Basic Income: Trying to save a city

Copyright nick otto 2025

Updated Sep 2021

Topics Business, Capitalism, Community, Documentary, Editorial, Education, Homelessness, Hope, Human Rights, Photography, Photojournalism, Politics, Portraiture, Poverty, Street

When this Central Valley city of 300,000, far removed from the wealth and coastal vibes of the Bay Area, became the first in the country to try out what it called a “guaranteed income” program in 2017, it became a nationwide sensation.

Cash payments spread from Congress to Stockton to Brazil â but notion of âuniversal basic incomeâ far from reality
The pandemic has taken the push for basic income national, making what has been a buzzy idea on the internet into real world programs. Will this idea outlast the economic crisis?
Washingtonpost.com

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