Major disparities persist between Black and White Americans despite the years of economic prosperity that preceded the coronavirus pandemic
When it comes to wealth and income, major disparities persist despite the years of economic prosperity that preceded the coronavirus pandemic.
The numbers are staggering.
So the racial divide remained.
Black workers face significant wage gaps in the labor market, and these differentials have grown since 2000, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
The disparity is another reason why it’s more difficult for Black families to save and build wealth than it is for White households.
One area that has improved over time is the gap in unemployment rates.
For decades, the jobless rate for Black Americans was typically more than twice that for White Americans. But it had narrowed to the smallest pre-pandemic differential on record in 2019, amid the economic prosperity.
Black Americans, however, were hit very hard by the coronavirus-fueled downturn, suffering a record number of job losses in the early months of the outbreak last year, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
But for White Americans, the rate is 5.3%, compared to 3% in February 2020.
The poverty rate for Black Americans in 2019 was the lowest on record, according to the Census Bureau.
But at 18.8%, it remains far more than double that of non-Hispanic White Americans, who had a poverty rate of 7.3%.
The gap is even more striking among children.
More than a quarter of Black children fell below the poverty line in 2019, compared to 8.3% of White children.
