Over 100 community, civil rights, consumer, and student advocacy organizations urge House and Senate leadership to insist on student debt cancellation for all borrowers during negotiations over the next coronavirus relief package.
Twelve years after starting college, white men have paid off 44% of their student loan balances on average, while black men saw their balances grow by 11%, according to an analysis from Demos.
Twelve years after starting college, the white female borrower has paid off 72% of her loan balance. Over the same time period, the typical Black female borrower's balance has grown by 13%.
"Imagine any financial transaction you make and someone says the price of this thing is $100,000, but you are very likely to pay nothing, but first you have to fill out all these forms."
“This is a microcosm of many intra-progressive, intra-left policy debates—whether it’s better to do something universal and achieve something with relative ease or ensure that only those struggling by some definition get relief."
Credit reports and scores control access to public goods people need. Yet, in the midst of a global pandemic and economic collapse, remaking the nation’s credit reporting system is not the top concern.
An executive action for student debt cancellation would provide much needed economic relief to millions of Black and Latinx families in order to avoid financial catastrophe during the continuing global pandemic.
The response to the COVID-19 crisis must include investments in public goods and health infrastructure, breaking up concentrated economic power, and equitable access for Black and brown communities.
“The actual dollar amount, it’s hard to put that at a figure that’s enough to help everyone who is struggling. And because of that, I’d err on the side of doing more.”
The hardships faced by Amazon’s warehouse employees are well known and now Black workers in Alabama are organizing, challenging power, and leading the efforts to become unionized.
"Black student debtors "are 16 percent more likely to be in default or seriously delinquent than white student debtors; Latino borrowers are 8 percent more likely."
The American Rescue Act will provide economic relief and investments in Black and Brown communities. Yet, for all its strengths, there are still significant limitations.
Sergio Ramirez's case, TransUnion v. Ramirez, reveals how credit reporting companies like TransUnion have little incentive to invest in making credit reports more accurate and avoiding serious mix-ups.
Letter from 31 civil rights, consumer, and community organizations urging the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) to issue a recommendation that credit information no longer be used to determine eligibility for, or the cost of, auto or home insurance.