
"Every qualified student—regardless of their color, gender, or financial situation—should be able to pursue their educational dreams."
New York – Demos—a dynamic think-and-do tank that champions a just, inclusive, multiracial democracy—released a report today calling on policymakers to take dramatic action to address our crippling student debt crisis. The report lays out several policy options to make student loans less burdensome, more humane, and less complicated.
Tweetable quote:No one should face massive financial pain simply because they decided to get an education.
Tweet This
“Every qualified student—regardless of their color, gender, or financial situation—should be able to pursue their educational dreams,” said report author, Mark Huelsman. “No one should face massive financial pain simply because they decided to get an education. Yet over the past several decades, state and federal policymakers have failed to adequately address the rising cost of college, respond to an increased demand for higher education, or ensure that students’ families have adequate resources to save for the future or deal with unexpected financial emergencies.”
Student loan debt places unacceptable risk on working-class families and people of color. Demos’ report asks and answers how we should recommit to the next generation of college students. The organization also calls on the federal government to consider a comprehensive, equitable policy of student loan cancellation, and provides the following policy options:
Several findings from the report include:
“There is a path toward student debt relief that is race-forward and transformative, and a way to restructure the system such that anyone with debt would be considerably better off than they are under the current confusing, punitive regime,” said Huelsman.
Demos is a dynamic think-and-do tank that powers the movement for a just, inclusive, multiracial democracy. Through cutting-edge policy research, inspiring litigation, and deep relationships with grassroots organizations, Demos champions solutions that will create a democracy and economy rooted in racial equity.