#BlackLivesMatter with the Racial Wealth Gap, Too
Even with how much I love running this blog and being part of the finance community, I wish teaching others about finance wasn’t so direly needed. The police brutality protests exploding throughout the United States – and the rest of the world! – are fights against issues that have been quietly funded and maintained by race supremacists going back hundreds of years. I do say “funded” as the racial wealth gap ensures those that have enough money will live a freer life. And overwhelmingly, that gap does not say “black lives matter”. It’s way past time to change that.
The Racial Wealth Gap Data
The median wealth of a black household in America is $3,600. My wealth, when I checked this morning, clocks in at over $129,000. I’ve met enough black people to know there’s nothing special about me that warrants my wealth being 35x theirs. My whiteness does not mean I am somehow more intelligent, creative, or otherwise offer more value. All it means is that the color of my skin will not be a factor in stifling my advancement through the world.
What’s more, my wealth is only going to continue to go up thanks to my financial education and planning; both have been historically kept from black families. My employment opportunities, college opportunities, and networking opportunities are further advantages that are not so readily extended to POC. That racial wealth gap keeps black people from reaching the same debt-free lifestyle heights as I have.
That disparity gives me more power. Let’s use political power as an example. On the surface I have as much political power as a black person does: one vote as an American citizen. We both can cast our vote for who will be our elected government officials and what policies are enacted in our communities. All well and good. What this doesn’t take into account is how much my money can influence what’s on the ballot and who makes it that far in the first place. If we both contribute ten percent of our wealth to a campaign their donation is $360 compared to my $12,900. Campaigns go a lot farther with heavy funding, as does lobbying initiatives or nonprofit programs.
How I’ve Benefited from the Racial Wealth Gap
On a personal level, I’m the one that gains the benefit of the doubt in any altercations between myself and POC. You need only look at the controversy surrounding racist Amy Cooper, who went viral after choking her dog while threatening a black birdwatcher in Central Park. If he had not recorded the interaction between them, and the police only has his word and Cooper’s, I do not have faith the truth would have come out. She is one of the few that have actually faced consequences for her racially-motivated actions, but her due is a stark exception to the long-lasting standard.
As a white woman, I will benefit greatly from that standard whether or not I choose to wield it. White people can easily hide behind racism for their own deeds by choosing a person of color as their scapegoat. This doesn’t just extend to altercations in public but in the office as well; the few people of color I do work with have to navigate a more hostile path than mine ever will be. And good luck attempting to bring about justice via HR channels or the courts; the former is there to protect the company, not you, and the latter works best for you when you have thousands at your disposal.
I bring this up now to recognize how much racism is interwoven into society. Into every society, if we’re being honest; on every other continent (except maybe Antarctica) exist systems that place one ethnic group more highly than another. This isn’t just a problem in the United States by a long shot, but this is still a huge problem. Especially for a nation that prides itself so much on individualist ideals and freedom.
So What Should We Do?
Which brings us to questioning how America’s systemic racism should be dealt with. We know what won’t work, either because it’s been underwhelming or it’s too unpopular of a policy to make it past launch. Specifically in terms of racial equality in wealth distribution, what would?
I don’t think education will be the be-all, end-all. But I do believe education is unquestionably crucial in closing the racial wealth gap. We have the data to prove financial literacy does not come naturally to the vast majority of the population; this includes myself, as it took a lot of frustrated focus to wrap my own head around how finances work. Having someone in my formative years teach me financial literacy would have made a massive positive difference in my life. I can only imagine how much more of an impact that someone could have on communities of color in this country.
Besides improved educational initiatives we should implement policies that send highly-qualified, highly-paid mental health professionals into communities of color. They should specifically address at least some of the setbacks that plague most underprivileged communities, including PTSD and living with neighborhood violence. I’d also like to see further investments into black-owned business, and expanded public programs like the ones I see in my rich, white-majority suburb. Some of these will obviously involve further government policy, but not all of it has to.
Start Where You Are
I’m continuing to keep myself educated on black issues and supporting black content creators, both in the finance sphere and outside of it. One of the most prominent black finance teams, Rich & REGULAR, wrote a phenomenal Instagram post on how much further your protesting can go when you’re financially free. Every word of it is outstanding, with this snippet especially jumping out to me:
They don’t have to choose between being themselves and staying employed. They can take a moment to breathe, to heal from the trauma of seeing our own killed at the hands of police over and over and over again.
Rich & REGULAR
I hope more people of color will learn about financial freedom and the steps they should take to get there. Much of the content is there already, with more coming out every day. Improving our outreach is the main holdback to financial awareness, but I hope to change that with projects like the We Want Guac song. The more we do as a community to help bring more aboard, the better life is for all.
We need to keep going.
For my fellow people of no color: stay educated of the true state of the world; work to improve it for everyone in a sustainable way. There won’t be lasting change if you go in guns blazing and lose all your fuel too quickly. Outrage fatigue is definitely a thing, and I’d much rather see you maintain your sense of passion in attacking these issues over becoming overwhelmed and apathetic. Righting these systemic wrongs won’t happen overnight, or in a year, or in any short amount of time. This will take several years of focus to fix, and growing your own progress towards inclusivity will go far.
For people of color: I stand with you and see the injustices done against your families and communities. You do not deserve this and the legislative process has so far failed you. Let’s continue working together for a better future and one that’s equitable for all.