economics
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I Have a Problem: I Keep Ending Up at Target
Hi, my name is Panama Jackson, and I’m addicted to Target. I don’t know how it happened. Look—walking into Target to buy some Mucinex and walking out with a blender, some new bedsheets, a hammer and a new backpack isn’t unique. Nearly everybody who walks into Target leaves $100 lighter than expected. At this point,…
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It’s Not Class, It’s Race: Why America Can’t Move Forward Until It Addresses the Racial Wealth Gap
We don’t tend to look at the wealth gap as a form of violence, even though it’s certainly rooted in it. Take the massacre in Wilmington, N.C. The 1898 race riot is one of those stories that have been willfully erased from history, even though it is the only coup d’état to ever take place…
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Chicago Deposits $20,000,000 in City’s Only Black-Owned Bank
In a move to strengthen Chicago’s local economy, city Treasurer Kurt Summers deposited … hold on while I convert $20 million using the Negrometric exchange rate (let’s see; you carry the 1 … OK, I think I got it). The city of Chicago “made it rain” on the city’s last remaining black-owned bank when it…
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New Study Suggests Black Middle-Class Families May Have Zero Wealth in a Few Decades
Because of legalized segregation, job discrimination and racist housing policies, it’s not surprising that black and Latinx families haven’t had the same opportunities to amass wealth as white families have. But a new study—and an accompanying op-ed by one of its researchers—reveal that black and Latinx families have actually lost wealth over the last 30…
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3 Facts That Prove the Reality of White Supremacy
When I was 16 years old, my entire family thought my little sister was going crazy (and by “sister” I mean my cousin who lived with us because black people do that, which could be the subject of an entirely different article). Every morning, she would tell us that there was a monster under her…
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Black Unemployment Hits Historic Low. Should Trump Get Credit or Are We Getting Played?
One thing that happens in a new relationship is that you start getting confused about who gets credit for what. Was I this good a salsa dancer with my ex? He (or she) totally cries during This Is Us, just like I do! Did I always like shrimp and grits, or does new bae just…
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How Police Brutality Keeps America Poor and Uneducated
What if there were a way that cities could put millions of dollars into the school systems without raising taxes? What if your county could fix the roads and invest hundreds of millions into education without going into debt? What if there were a way states could inject funds into jobs and community programs without…
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Black People in ‘the Land’ Share How the NBA Championship Really Affects the City
After the relocation of tax-based businesses and manufacturing companies in Cleveland, the city experienced a major loss in population, coupled with rampant unemployment. No one has been hit harder than the city’s black community, who make up 53 percent of the city’s population and reside in one of the most segregated cities in the country.…