As billionaires multiply 🚀 and poverty deepens 📉 in post-pandemic America, a coalition of investors, businesses, and activists is urging President Biden to overhaul economic policies to address the racial wealth gap—a crisis they call \"monumental.\"
🏙️ The COVID-19 Effect: The pandemic hit minority communities hardest, with nearly 8 million Americans slipping into poverty in 2020 even as Forbes added 493 new billionaires. \"A new billionaire every 17 hours,\" the magazine noted—a stark contrast to rising unemployment and shuttered businesses.
📜 The Coalition’s Ask: The group wants a White House Initiative on Inclusive Economic Growth to promote fairer markets. Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus and $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan aim to boost recovery, but experts argue more systemic fixes—like affordable housing expansions and student debt relief—are critical.
💡 Why It Matters: Closing the racial wealth gap could grow U.S. GDP by 4-6% by 2028, per McKinsey. Yet white families’ average wealth remains 7x higher than Black families’, a gap that persists regardless of education or income, says the Economic Policy Institute.
While Biden’s proposed $9 billion housing budget increase could help, economists stress: \"Stimulus checks aren’t enough.\" From education reform to small-business support, the road to equity is long—but the coalition says it’s time to start paving. 🌍✨
