As America’s economic woes continue to plague its citizens due to the Great Recession, the disparity of wealth between Whites and Blacks has widened to a level that only threatens to grow as their seems to be little relief on the horizon for African Americans and Hispanics when compared to their White and Asian counterparts, according to figures from 2010’s Census Bureau findings.
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A report from CNN highlighted a staggering figure: Whites are 22 times more likely to have access to wealth when compared to Blacks, and when paired against Hispanics, Whites outnumber that group 15 to 1.
Highlighting a period between 2005 and 2010, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians saw their median household net worth drop to around 60 percent while, for Whites, the number hovered around 23 percent. Historically, the gap of wealth between Whites and other races has always been noticeably wide considering Blacks and Hispanics suffer from underemployment, less education, and typically earn less wages.
What remains a standout point is that, in 2005, the gap was a mere 12 to 1 for Whites and Blacks. In a scant five years, the economic upheaval in America, and globally, has left lasting impact on the financial landscape for people of color. The housing market bust also had a stronger effect on Black and Hispanic residents than Whites, contributing to the massive loss of net worth.
However, Asians suffered the hardest hits by way of the mortgage crunch.
Experts agree that the wealth gap is a threat to the future of young Blacks and Hispanics. Without fair earning power, families of color will not be able to put away money to send their children to college — and that will impact their earning potential later on. Unfortunately, jobs have been a sticking point for both Democrats and Republicans going in to the election season, with neither side offering concrete solutions to help soften the blow.
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