Racial Wealth Gap Quadrupled Since Mid-1980s


http://ts-si.org/economy/25010-racial-wealth-gap-quadrupled-since-mid-1980s
Waltham, MA, USA. The wealth gap between white and African-American families showed a measurable increase of more than four times between the years 1984-2007, and middle-income white households now own far more wealth than high-income African Americans.
The findings are from a research brief prepared by the Institute on Assets and Social Policy (IASP) at Brandeis University.
National data reveals the effects of policies that benefit the wealthiest, with persistent discrimination toward others in housing, credit and labor markets
The IASP also reported that many African Americans hold more debt than assets and at least 25 percent of African-American families had no assets to turn to in times of economic hardship. The fourfold increase in the wealth gap, it said, reflects public policies, such as tax cuts on investment income and inheritances, which benefit the wealthiest and persistent discrimination in housing, credit and labor markets.

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