Black America Is in the Red: A Breakdown of the Stats
Blacks continue to lag behind whites in the economy.
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A Renewed Focus - The Joint Economic Committee has released a new report on the economic challenges faced by African-Americans and documents the economic barriers they face. It also includes state-by-state data on unemployment, poverty and median household incomes for Blacks and Whites. Although the statistics are not surprising, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus believe they can be used to bring a "renewed focus" to their work and level the playing field. — Joyce Jones (@BETpolitichick) (Photo: Courtesy of the Congressional Black Caucus)
Photo By Photo: Courtesy of the Congressional Black Caucus
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No Surprises - "Today's report detailing the disparities that African-Americans face comes as no surprise to those who experience the reality of such inequities in their daily lives," said CBC chairman G.K. Butterfield at a press conference to present the report's findings. "Much of the country has experienced an economic recovery over the last six years, but there is still much work that remains and nowhere is this more evident than in the African-American community." (Photo: Chuck Liddy/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT)
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Large Racial Gap - "The numbers are stark, they are troubling and they are unacceptable," said Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-New York), ranking Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee. "What's especially concerning is that the already large racial gap in household wealth has grown even wider since the recession. This report is a powerful, sobering reminder that policymakers must do more to open doors of opportunity for African-Americans." (Photo: Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)
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Median Income - At $34,600, the median income of African-American households is nearly $24,000 less than the median income of white households ($58,300). In addition, the median net worth of white households is 13 times that of Black households.(Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)
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Living in Poverty - Black Americans are almost three times more likely to live in poverty than white Americans. (Photo: Charles O'Rear/Corbis)
Photo By Photo: Charles O'Rear/Corbis
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