KINFOLK AND THE RACIAL WEALTH DIVIDE

When we moved to Dallas almost two decades ago, my spouse and I united with a church and, among other things, became active participants in a predominantly Black group of married couples. The group was college educated and consisted of finance types, physicians, high ranking public sector employees, and academicians. Still in the relatively early stages of our various careers, the group discussions centered on such issues as faith, married life, career, politics, and kids.

And parents.

Our parents had gotten older right before our eyes and, in some cases, were dealing with a host of problems, including those related to health and finances. Increasingly, part of every discussion revolved around moving our parents closer to us, securing them more suitable and safer housing, getting them out of debt, and running them some coins to help out with monthly bills. None of our parents had a wad of cash stashed away and many of them were starting to have a lot more month than money.

Our parents. We loved/love them. And we felt a moral (perhaps even a Divine) obligation to do what we could to help them. As far as we were concerned, if they needed help, then we could hardly just sit there and observe them struggle. After all, we--with our college degrees and incomes that were a king's ransom compared to what our parents had pulled in-- were deeply intertwined with them. To the best of their ability, they had "done for us" and now it was our time to reciprocate. Failure to do so, as far we were concerned, would be downright trifling. And of the many things we may have been, trifling has never been one of them.

RACIAL DISPARITIES IN INTERGENERATIONAL WEALTH AND THE ITS IMPACT THE NETWORTH OF BLACK AND WHITE COLLEGE EDUCATED FAMILIES

Some recent research yields important insights on the flow of funds and wealth into and out of college educated Black and White families. For example, Meschede et al. (2017) find that college educated Black families are less likely to receive and more likely to give financial support to their kinfolk and to their parents in particular. This is the exact reverse of the pattern for college educated Black households: Compared to their Black counterparts, college educated White households are more likely to receive and less likely to have to give financial support to their parents. Here's a few of the findings that are particularly germane to this post:

• 64% of college educated White households reported that their parents helped to pay for their schooling. That compares to 37% of college educated Black households.

• College educated White households were slightly more than three times as likely as their Black counterparts to have received money from their parents to assist in the purchase of home.

Now, here's the reversal pointed out above:

• 45% of college educated Black households--in contrast to 16% of their White counterparts-- report having had to help their parents out financially.

What's more, Meschede et al. (2017) also find that college educated White families are more likely than their Black counterparts to receive large inheritances or gifts from their parents:

"Among college-educated households, very few Black households (9 percent) received such a large financial gift, compared to almost one-third of college-educated White households (32 percent). Consistent with past research, not only do very few Black households receive such large financial transfers, but when they do they are significantly smaller. White college-educated families received $55,419 at the median and $235,353 at the mean, while their Black counterparts received $36,360 and $65,755, respectively."

No matter how you cut it, studies like this one make it abundantly clear that college-educated White and Black households are launched and travel upon different wealth trajectories. When you are more likely to receive assistance for the acquisition of a value appreciating asset, more likely to have some of the cost of your education covered, and more likely to receive a large gift or inheritance-- well, that's the kind of stuff that gives you a head start in the race and more favorably positions you to build levels of wealth that you, in turn, can pass onto your progeny. In contrast, if your kinfolk can't provide much financial assistance to help you purchase a home, pay your college tuition bill or bequeath you large gifts or inheritances-- well, then, you're more likely to start the race with weights around your ankles. According to studies like the one cited above, this is pretty much what happens to college-educated Whites and Black households, and one of the major reasons underlying disparities in their wealth status.

One more thing, though: It's going to take more than individualized efforts to deal with the deep racial disparity in wealth that exists. That disparity flows out of a history of exclusion and exploitation of Black folk and their labor-- something that found expression in public policies. While no one in their right mind would denigrate individual efforts to secure economic security for themselves and their kinfolk, ultimately, it's going to take bold public policies the address and redress that gaping chasm.

To think otherwise is delusional.

Catch you on the flip side,

Doc Greene