Teach the Budget

It’s by now common knowledge that economic inequality in the US has grown at breakneck speed since the 1960s. But the extent of the hardship many Americans face is pretty harrowing. Below is a round-up of stats that reveal the urgency of the problem.

• Nearly 1 in 2 Americans (48%) is living in poverty or considered low-income.
• The portion of working-age Americans who are living at or below the poverty level is 56.7%–the highest it’s been since the 1960s.
• 1 in 5 U.S. children are living in poverty, defined as $22,350/year for a family of four.
• The average unemployed worker will spend over 40 weeks looking for another job.
• Nearly 1 in 5 working Americans consider themselves underemployed.
• 1 in 3 Americans does not have enough savings to cover one month of housing costs if they lose their jobs.

When it comes to poverty, race and gender matter–by a lot.

• In 2010, the poverty rates among blacks and Hispanics was nearly twice the rate among whites (15% vs. 27%–remember, this is defined as $22,350/year for a family of four and does not households considered to be “low-income.” The rate for Asians was 12%.)
• Single mothers are the most likely of all groups to be poor. In 2010, 31.6% of female-headed households were in poverty

See our page on growing income gaps for a comparison on how the 1% have faired.

A new report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBN) contains some pretty grim numbers. Here are some highlights:

• About 40% of Americans under 30 have outstanding student loan debt. That number is about 15% for all American adults.
• The average amount owed is about $23,000 and more than half of those with student loan debt–about 57%–owe more than $10,000. Current students will graduate with an average of $26,000.
• While previous reports had loan default rates at a rather conservative 9%, FRNB notes that these estimates do not account for the fact that roughly 47% of student loan borrowers are in deferral or forbearance–meaning their loans have not yet come due, either because they are still in school, still within the post-graduation grace period, or for some other reason.
• When the researchers looked only at those borrowers currently in the “repayment cycle”, they found that 27%–over a quarter of student loan borrowers–are late on their payments. (A loan is technically in default when no payment is made for 270-360 days.)

Additionally, while this report does not do a demographic breakdown, it’s important to note that we know from previous studies that these dynamics hit underprivileged communities the hardest, as students of color and first-generation college students on average take on more debt, earn less upon graduation, and  thus default at higher rates.

As debts and defaults balloon, this system looks more and more like debt peonage. It’s time to rethink student debt.

These posters tell the dirt on the unaccountable and corrupt, multi-millionaire and billionaire UC Regents who profit from our university while raising tuition, cutting services, and laying off workers and teachers.

The posters are 11×17, black and white, and perfect for posting at bus stops, near bathroom lines, or anywhere students gather or have time to kill. Check them out. More coming soon!

Dick Blum

Will De la Pena

Russ Gould

Monica Lozano

Paul Wachter

Coming Soon:

Sherry Lansing

Leslie Tang-Schilling

Last night’s Daily Show offered a spot-on critique of what Romney’s tax returns reveal about the candidate’s 1-percenter politics. While the Right wing frames its fiscal policies in terms of “individualism,” in effect their positions amount to a regime that favors the rich and chastises the working- and middle-class. Moreover, Romney’s stance on taxes is based on a blatant fiction: GOP-ers claim that 47% of Americans pay no taxes–but the reality is that 86% of Americans pay taxes. The remaining 14% don’t pay taxes because they are elderly or disabled and can’t work.

Watch the video here.

For information on this campaign, click here.