Yes, ‘Black Tax’ Is a Real Thing, And It’s Even Worse Than You Can Imagine

There’s a good chance you’ve heard the term the “Black Tax” used to describe the idea that Black Americans have to work ten times as hard for half as much. But did you know there’s a much more literal meaning?

In his new book, “The Black Tax: 150 Years of Theft Exploitation, And Dispossession In America,” Historian Andrew W. Kahrl reveals the myriad of ways that the tax system screws over Black Americans.

And trust us, you’re going to want to hear about it.

Kahrl explains that as a result of a series of housing and tax policy decisions, Black Americans end up paying inflated property tax rates.

And he isn’t pulling this out of nowhere.

In 2020, a working paper by economists Troup Howard of the University of Utah and Carlos Avenancio-León of Indiana University found that Black families consistently paid higher property taxes than similarly situated white families.

According to the paper, property tax assessment of homes owned by Black people were consistently higher, relative to the final sale price, than homes owned by white families.

In his book, Kahrl notes that not only do Black families pay more than their share of property taxes, they also receive fewer services. He argues that while these policies began as an intentional practice, now it has more to do with systemic issues.

“What we often see now is bias or favoritism toward certain types of property and property owners, like high-end development,” Kahrl told the Guardian. “The wealthy may have greater access to political leverage, or they’re better able to utilize the tax appeals process. It’s not necessarily an assessor who’s conniving to overtax certain populations anymore.”

The idea that wealthy and powerful white Americans get away with paying less in taxes isn’t exactly novel. For example, in 2021, Jeff Bezos’s company, Amazon, made $35.1 billion in profits. And only paid an effective tax rate of 6.1%.

And property taxes aren’t the only way Black Americans get screwed over by the tax system. In a letter to Congress, the Internal Revenue Service admitted to auditing Black taxpayers at a higher rate. Previous research has shown that their algorithm disproportionately targets Black taxpayers at the expense of targeting people who actually underreport their taxes.

While these definitely aren’t the only ways the system is messing with Black taxpayers, it’s certainly plenty to think about.