In January, a relentless wave of wildfires tore through Los Angeles, reducing a historic Black community to ash and claiming 29 lives. Later that month, a rare winter storm brought heavy snow to the Southeast and the Gulf Coast. Eleven people perished. Then, in March, more than 100 tornadoes ripped through the South in two […]
racial wealth gap
Posted inEnvironmental Justice
An Electric Car Journey Through the South
The Southeast corridor of the U.S. — the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida — is the country’s largest producer of electric vehicles. Roughly 40% of the nation’s electronic vehicle assembly investments, totaling $60 billion, and manufacturing jobs are found here. So when my preferred rental car company ran out of gas-powered cars in Charlotte, North […]
Posted inEducation, Partner Content, Student Loans
Parent PLUS Loans Can Debilitate Black Families. Here’s What to Know.
For Black parents looking to help their children pay for an education at a historically Black college or university, Parent PLUS loans have become a common choice. Congress created the loans as a way for middle- and upper-income parents to help their children pay for college. But over time, they’ve become the answer for many […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Extreme Weather
Want to Better Prepare Black Communities for Tornadoes? Erode the Income Gap.
The severity of the recent network of tornadoes that practically erased a majority Black rural town in Mississippi off the map would’ve leveled any community in its path — but the region’s high amount of mobile homes, low access to information networks, and poor insurance rates created a perfect storm. “Tornadic storms will continue to […]
Posted inMoney, Wealth Gap
The Case for Reparations: What Compensating Black Americans Could Look Like
Edmund Ford taught math for 14½ years and noticed that opportunities were sparse and unevenly distributed in Tennessee’s Shelby County Schools. “My classrooms were probably about 95% Black,” he said. “Many of my students weren’t getting the tools and resources they needed so that after they graduated from high school, they’d be impervious to social […]
Posted inEducation, K-12
What’s Missing in Financial Literacy Courses in School? Experts Explain.
At least 15 states have joined the growing movement to make financial literacy a requirement for high school graduation. Utah became the first to require a half-credit financial literacy class as a graduation mandate in 2004. Today, eight states require a stand-alone course that provides students with an understanding of personal finance and skills to […]
Posted inMoney, Wealth Gap
These Alternative Banks Could Be the Key to Shrinking the Racial Wealth Gap
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 […]
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 inEnvironmental Justice, Extreme Weather
A New Phenomenon Threatens to Disrupt Black Homeownership
As Black Americans have strived for generations to own homes — and then to afford to stay in them — a recent study has revealed a new phenomenon that threatens to disrupt Black homeownership once again. Thousands of American homes in flood-prone areas are overvalued by as much as $237 billion, making it even more […]
Posted inEducation, Student Loans
What More Student Loan Relief Would Mean for Black Borrowers
The news that Americans will see thousands of dollars wiped from their federal student loan debt has been met with elation by many — but disappointment by others. The Biden administration announced last month that it will forgive $10,000 to $20,000 per borrower, an unprecedented move to ease the nation’s student debt crisis. But those […]