Local Data Are Key to Closing the Racial Wealth Gap
Tuesday, September 10th, 2024
The racial wealth gap is a powerful number—it captures the structural racism that’s been baked into the American economy and social institutions, continued uneven opportunities, and hopes for a future of shared prosperity.
But limited data on wealth exist. Well-respected national surveys like the Survey of Consumer Finances or Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) provide broad insights but don’t allow for the local data necessary to fully understand community members’ lives and the local root causes of wealth disparities. This makes it hard to develop trusted solutions to those problems.
The limited local data we do have are powerful. Recent surveys revealed the average white household in the DC metropolitan area has 81 times the wealth of a Black household. This research catalyzed action across the region, including the creation of DC Council’s Office of Racial Equity, motivating arguments for reparations, powering advocacy for racially just tax and budget decisions, and supporting community wealth building. Learn more.
Sourced from Urban Institute