In this episode we discuss how I’ve now met about two dozen people on my listening tour. I’m emotionally moved that within 5-10 minutes of talking, they share the hardest and best aspects of their lives. While these people vary (in race, gender, age, born in different regions of the country) everyone is essentially looking for the same thing: housing, food, strong relationships/community, and a sense of purpose. Its been especially fun for me to learn the stories of elders (folks in their 70s/80s), who don’t always get the respect they deserve. Most people seem to agree that those with a little more could do less hoarding/more sharing with those who have less since any one person’s wealth is the result of many collective systems, policies, and generations. Where we disagree is on the mechanisms / policies that can make that redistribution a reality. Reminder that you can find out which native tribe’s land you’re on, their history and their present here: https://native-land.ca/ For an example of what repair work looks like in action, this is an indigenous woman group that is leading repair work in the Bay Area: https://sogoreate-landtrust.org/ The main topic is money - specifically how I can afford to do this road trip. I share that my current savings are the result of the accumulation of generational wealth (i.e. my individual “savings mindset” and long hours working the past 12 years are but a small contributor to my overall savings). This is related to the racial wealth gap as different points along this inter-generational journey are affected by the ability to access capital (e.g. mortgage, small business loan) / certain social networks, which is tied to race. I recommend watching this quick YouTube video, which explains the racial wealth gap, including the specific policies (recent and historical) that led to the gap: “Explained - Racial Wealth Gap” https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Mqrhn8khGLM In this way, each generation cannot be looked at by itself, it must be reviewed in the context of the generations that came before. I express my appreciation for the “gratitude/ community-based mindset” and “savings mindset” instilled in me by my parents. Next, we discuss what it was like for Kate’s family to live paycheck to paycheck and never have anything left to put into savings, with little knowledge of capital markets. We also discuss (and disagree on) ideas for closing the racial wealth gap. We agree that ideas like financial literacy classes in middle/high school for every student are great, however, they do not directly address racism, which caused the gap. One school of thought for closing the racial wealth gap is “baby bonds” or “social security at birth.” This type of program could be targeted at the poor, rather than giving every baby the same amount of money. While this idea addresses classism, is does not directly address racism. Another school of thought includes acknowledging the past/present harm of black folks through repair work. The financial aspect (which is just one aspect of a bigger reconciliation process) of this repair work is often referred to as reparations (i.e. compensation given for abuse or injury). I feel getting into, and addressing, the deep root causes of the racial wealth gap is spiritual work that will benefit the entire nation. One way to raise money to pay reparations would be to tax the inheritances of the very wealthy (not middle class) at a higher rate. Unlike other countries that have created reconciliation programs for horrific atrocities (including, but not limited to, financial aspects), the US has never even done an exploratory committee to look into this reconciliation process. Learn more about the 30 year old bill for this, HR 40, here: https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/40 Here is the Duke study on the racial wealth gap I referenced: https://socialequity.duke.edu/portfolio-item/what-we-get-wrong-abo
