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| Closing the Racial Wealth Gap |
For 400 years, structural racism embedded in federal, state, and local policies has produced and maintained a stark wealth gap between Black and white Americans. Today, the typical white household holds 10 times more wealth than the typical Black household. This disparity persists even after controlling for protective factors such as education, income, or homeownership. While lawmakers and policy experts increasingly agree that the racial wealth gap poses a serious problem, little consensus exists on the most effective way to eliminate it. For instance, a recent CAP analysis found that five leading policy proposals will not be enough alone or in combination to fully close the racial wealth gap by 2060.
Racial disparities in wealth are not a result of individual or family choices, but rather are the result of structural racism in American public policy. Many government programs designed to expand access to homeownership, higher education, fair wages, and union protections have largely benefited white households, allowing them to build and transfer wealth across generations, while Black households were systematically excluded. As a result, the racial wealth gap persists, even after controlling for educational attainment, marital status, age, and income level.
Racial wealth inequality is the result of centuries of structural racism in American public policy and has only worsened due to the coronavirus pandemic. Closing the racial wealth gap will require bold and intentional policies, including but not limited to supporting and analyzing reparations as a viable policy solution to make amends for more than 400 years of injustice.
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| Truth and Reconciliation |
Many Americans lack a complete understanding of their nation's history. While 84 percent of Black Americans believe that the legacy of slavery affects the current outcomes for Black people, a much smaller fraction—58 percent—of white Americans agree. We must look at the history of slavery in the United States, how its roots have spread to the present day, and what needs to be done to right years of oppression.
Slavery was followed by terror and exclusion in all aspects of American life; it provided the scaffolding and paved the way for decades of intentional, systematic disenfranchisement of Black Americans
This moment of reflection on our nation's systemic racism must be used to make real structural change. One of the most effective ways to address this collective harm is to tackle the racial wealth gap. Lawmakers must support H.R. 40, a bill that would create a commission to analyze reparations as a possible policy intervention to close the racial wealth gap.
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| Systematic Inequality |
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| Exploitation and Neglect |
| This report examines how government-sanctioned job segregation, exploitation, and neglect exacerbated racial inequality in the United States. Eliminating these disparities will require long-term, targeted interventions to expand access to opportunity for people of color. |
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| Displacement, Exclusion, and Segregation |
| Structural racism in the U.S. housing system has contributed to persistent racial disparities in wealth, especially between Black and white households. In fact, these differences are so entrenched that if current trends continue, it could take more than 200 years for the average Black family to accumulate the same amount of wealth as its white counterparts. |
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| #MoreThanFebruary on Social |
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