There were plenty of topics discussed that surround black wealth including the building of black wealth, the lack thereof, reasons for the lack, the wealth gap between blacks and white, the income gap between black and whites, etc. Below are some of the points I found notable:- While the black/white income gap is decreasing, the white/black wealth gap is increasing. For every $1 in black wealth, there's $8 (or maybe it was $12, I can't recall which one...) in white wealth. The point of this statistic was to make the point that even though we're making more money, we're not making our money work for us as well as we should. One probable reason for this that was posed by an attendee was that whites have had money invested in interest-bearing assets for far longer than we have. For this reason, their money has had more time to grow and thus, build MORE wealth. For example, if someone put money in an interest bearing account in the 50's and left it there and you put the same amount of money in a similar account in the 80's and left it there, of course their money's going to have grown more than yours because of the amount of time it's had to grow and accumulate in comparison to your money. This development of wealth over time is something that we cannot turn back the clocks and get. So we have to start building wealth now for times far far ahead of us.
- Education is one of the keys to building black wealth. We need to become more educated in general and we can build upon that educational foundation a knowledge of finances, the economy, real estate, the stock market, etc. This will help us gain broad knowledge as well as the financial knowledge we need to build and retain wealth through generations. I brought up the point of black people having a misconception of what wealth is. Like Chris Rock said, "Shaq is RICH. The white man that signs Shaq's check is WEALTHY!" Also, the images on television and what we hear through music can give us a misconception of what it means to be wealthy.
- While many blacks claim to have a vested interest in their child's education, most do NOT put their money where their mouths are. Aside from buying your child supplies for school and attending PTA meetings, Blacks need to recycle some of their money back into their school systems. Many blacks are opting to take their kids out of public school systems and put them into private school. But can the same money being used to pay private school tuition be put into public schools to help better the facilities and the quality of teaching?
- It's easy for those of us who have knowledge of how to build wealth to sit around and discuss topics like this, but there is a dissemination of information/education that needs to take place in our community so that those who may not have this information or do not seek out this information can obtain it or at least be exposed.
- Institutional racism still exists in this country. "Racism still alive, they just be concealing it" (Kanye West). Whether it's denial of life or health insurance because your race is more prone to certain diseases (ie - sickle cell anemia), or getting a higher interest rate on a mortgage loan than a non-Black person with a similar financial history...Discrimination and racism are still very much alive, but in more subtle forms than in the past. So it's up to us to do our research and compare companies, investigate them, etc. so that we can get what we deserve and get fair treatment.
- "Everything is not about black and white! Let the world be your perspective". An older man who was of African descent mentioned these two things and I found them to be very profound. We can't always compare blacks to whites in terms of achievements or financial stability or whatever else we decide to compare the two ethnicities based on. This man mentioned that hard work and a desire to be the best can help you produce the best products, services, etc. And that if you have THE VERY BEST, your skin color or background won't matter. I believe that he is right. Regardless of your race, creed, or color, if you have something that can make other people money, they will do business with you (ie - hip hop artists and athletes). But again, don't always see the world through black-and-white glasses, let the world be your perspective. I found this to be profound because I've had a tendency to look at certain aspects of life through black-and-white glasses myself. In the past moreso than now, but I totally understood the point he was trying to make.
Prince George's County Maryland (where I grew up) was brought up numerous times during this discussion as a place where there is perceived black wealth. It is the "richest" majority Black county in the country. But in reality, the school system there is not very good, many neighborhoods that used to be highly desired are beginning to become run-down, and the crime rate is steadily increasing. The question was raised, "Why is this happening?" Are we only concerned with giving off the aura of wealth but not doing what needs to be done in order to nurture it and pass it on for generations? Why are crime rates going up and the school system getting worse? These are the Black "HAVES", not the "have-nots"!
Interesting stuff. I'm not really trying to inspire debate with this post, moreso discussion. I think that this type of topic deserves a sit-down discussion among people from all different walks of life. I am very glad I attended this rap session and from what I was told, there will be more to come so hopefully there will be more people each time and not just people who actively seek the knowledge they need to develop wealth for themselves and generations to come. Just thought I'd share the highlights with everyone.
There were also a couple books mentioned that were highly recommended by one of the professors there and the moderator:
Black Wealth/White Wealth by Melvin Oliver and Thomas Shapiro
40 Million Dollar Slaves by William C. Rhoden
2 comments:
I really am about to pick up those books...
I'm witcha!
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