Black Elders Deserve the Right to Financial and Economic Justice
PRINCIPLE #4 OF THE BLACK ELDERING BILL OF RIGHTS
The enduring legacy of slavery, sharecropping, Reconstruction-era atrocities, Jim Crow laws, and housing and job discrimination has led to an intractable state of economic disenfranchisement and vulnerability for Blacks in America. Research has shown that the United States of America would have to invest $7.5 trillion to cut the Black-White wealth gap in half and $15 trillion to completely eliminate the wealth gap entirely. In the absence of reparations, Black Elders and their descendants will never achieve a modicum of the economic parity, wealth accumulation, or cash flow to afford the level of high-quality care and resources needed to age with dignity. Nonetheless, Black Elders deserve the right to experience a level of financial and economic peace and stability equivalent to the value of free labor that was extracted from their ancestors who toiled on U.S. soil.
Black Elders deserve to live securely within their financial means and circumstances by having access to subsidized, affordable housing for low-and-moderate income older adults; by having access to publicly funded and subsidized long-term care insurance; by having increased eligibility for means tested programs and services for older adults; and, by being exempted from paying taxes on social security income.
Far too often, financial stressors are detrimental to the health, wellbeing, and aging journeys of Black Elders. Even within limited means, Black Elders often bear the financial weight of providing for their families and loved ones. Black Elders deserve to spend their golden years enjoying the fruits of their labor without the pressure and responsibility of being the primary or sole financial stewards of their families.
