Following the racial justice protests of 2020, several financial corporations and foundations promised to make investments to advance racial equality. Companies such as JP Chase Morgan, Mastercard, and Citi Foundation poured millions of dollars into Black community development financial institutions (CDFIs) as white business leaders reckoned with the ways systemic racism has impaired economic progress […]
Aallyah Wright
Aallyah Wright is the rural issues reporter for Capital B. From farmers to land fights to health care and jobs, her reporting explores the issues that matter most while celebrating culture and joy.
Follow her on Bluesky @aallyahpatrice.bsky.social and Instagram @journalistaallyah.
Posted inMoney, Wealth Gap
Struggling to Talk About Money? Here’s a List of Resources to Teach Financial Literacy.
As more states move to mandate financial literacy as a prerequisite for high school graduation, financial experts worry the courses lack the historical context needed to prepare Black youth for wealth building in America. For years, Black people have sounded the alarm for more holistic financial education to address the racial wealth gap. Black people […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
The History of White Lawmakers Trying to Take Over Mississippi’s Predominately Black Capital
Arekia Bennett-Scott didn’t expect her hometown to be thrust into the national spotlight just months after the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, resurfaced tensions over how state officials treat the majority-Black city. Yet, residents in the Democratic-led capital are now pushing back against efforts by white Republican state officials to gain more power over the […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
The History of White Lawmakers Trying to Take Over Mississippi’s Predominantly Black Capital
Arekia Bennett-Scott didn’t expect her hometown to be thrust into the national spotlight just months after the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, resurfaced tensions over how state officials treat the majority-Black city. Yet, residents in the Democratic-led capital are now pushing back against efforts by white Republican state officials to gain more power over the […]
Posted inEducation, K-12
GOP States Are Targeting AP Black Studies. Here’s How Kids Can Learn It Outside of School.
This story has been updated. At least four Republican-led states are considering whether a new African American Studies course is in compliance with its laws that restrict lessons on race, following Florida’s ban on the proposed course last month. Officials in education departments in Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota, and Virginia are reviewing the advanced placement […]
Posted inEducation, Student Loans
What We Know About Biden’s Student Loan Debt Relief Plan Ahead of the Supreme Court Hearings
In less than 24 hours, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on President Joe Biden’s $400 billion student loan forgiveness program and consider whether the administration can advance the plan forward. The court agreed to hear two separate cases challenging the legality of Biden’s plan or whether Biden exceeded executive authority. After announcing […]
Posted inEducation, K-12
‘These Kids Can’t Wait’: The Struggle to Address the Black Youth Mental Health Crisis
At first, Mira Ugwuadu felt a sense of relief when her high school transitioned to remote learning in 2020, allowing her to work on advanced placement courses at her own pace. But soon, the 17-year-old found herself studying outside of school hours, unable to separate academics from her home life. When her classmates went back […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
‘I Was on My Knees, Handcuffed’: Black Man Shot By Mississippi Police Tells His Story
JACKSON, Miss. — Michael Corey Jenkins held his neck, covered in white gauze bandages, as he struggled to form words. He wanted to explain the violent abuse he endured at the hands of deputies from the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office last month. “I was on my knees, handcuffed, and he was standing over me,” Jenkins […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Police Shot Handcuffed Black Man in the Face in Mississippi, Attorney Says
BRAXTON, Miss. — A 32-year-old Black man came close to death last month when he was shot in the mouth while handcuffed during a drug raid in this small, predominately white village, according to an attorney for his family. Six white sheriff’s deputies falsely accused him and a friend of selling drugs and “dating white […]
Posted inRural Issues
Drug Costs Are Burdening Rural Black Seniors. This New Law Could Help.
Inflation has eased nationwide in recent months, but older Black Americans — particularly those in rural areas — are still struggling to pay for their essential needs, often choosing between life-saving medications and rent. Even before the pandemic, half of adults who were 65 or older and lived alone didn’t have enough money to afford […]
