The National Urban League published the first edition of its State of Black America report 40 years ago. The report introduced a serious consideration of the social, economic, and social political issues facing African Americans in the national discourse.

Published in 1976, schools had been legally segregated for 22 years, the Civil Rights Act of 1965 had been in effect for 11 years, and the economy had been in economic recovery for a year from the recession that lasted from November 1973 to March of 1975.

Blacks were nearly twice as likely as whites to be unemployed, the average household had just 59 cents for every dollar of white household income, and African Americans were three times more likely to live in poverty than whites.

To go further back and add the statistic provided by the aging statesman on black economics, Claude Anderson, at the end of slavery in 1876, blacks owned less than half one percent of the total wealth of the United States. This figure has remained the same to this day almost 150 years later.

General wealth and the so-called purchasing power is the central theme of our talk today.

The 40-year comparison of the Urban National Leagues from 1976 to 2016 is not much of a surprise or surprise to many in the black community, despite having a black family in the White House for the past 8 years. The New York Times in 1976 published an article titled “Distress Signal”, reporting on the first edition of the National Urban Leagues State of Black America.

The Times article said at the time: “Beyond the statistics it contains, grim enough in themselves, the report dramatizes a substantial failure of political leadership.” This is what we also need to discuss to move forward.

The median income for a black family in 1976 was $ 9,242 for a white family it was $ 15,537. In 2016, the average black family made approximately $ 35,481 compared to the average white family nationwide at $ 59,622.

In terms of people living below the poverty line, in 1976 blacks were 29.4% compared to whites at 9.1% in 1976. In 2016, blacks are in poverty by 27 % and live below that line, whites are in the 10%. The unemployment rate for blacks in 1976 was 13.2%, whites were 7%. Today, unemployment for blacks, they say, averages 9.6% and whites 4.8%. Home ownership for blacks was 43.7% compared to whites at 67.6%. Due to the recent recession of 2008, blacks were hit the hardest in this larger category.

The average American has most of his wealth in his home, so this aspect is critical. Today, black home ownership is at 43% with whites at 72.6%. There are other statistics that you can check at http://soba.iamempowered.com/2016-executive-summary.

As we can see from this study, things haven’t changed much economically for blacks in forty years in a row! There are some exceptions, of course. We have many black families that earn more than $ 35k. We have many examples of athletes, artists, and personalities who have high-paying jobs. The problem is that many more of us live and are trapped at or just above the poverty line. The New York Times in 1976 called all this a “substantial failure of political leadership.” I would have to partially agree with that for those times and today. The problem is in the midst of all these depressing statistics, in a way, blacks as a group are spending over $ 1 trillion a year on things! How can this be possible ?! I’m pretty sure the white media published this statistic and the black media picked it up and it spread throughout the black community. It sounds good and impressive. “Blacks Predicted $ 1.1 Trillion in Purchasing Power by 2015.” Comparison of the so-called “purchasing power” with other economies in the world. This would be a fair comparison if blacks in America were truly in unison on their spending, as a nation moving as one, taking responsibility for all aspects of our spending. Convert that so-called “purchasing power” into real economic power in politics, national agriculture and community by community, building the necessary institutions, owning properties and businesses in our own communities, banking, etc.

I began to feel that the $ 1 trillion spending item was a calling card for other companies, if they didn’t already know about the “buying power” of the black community. What else could it have been? The state of American blacks, as well as blacks throughout the diaspora economically, is in a terrible state of emergency! We have the statistics! I have studied part of the breakdown of where the money was being spent. Outside of living overhead, we buy clothes like “The Lifestyle of the Rich and Famous.” Blacks are the study’s top alcohol users, and conversely, we love and spend a lot on entertainment. We do not own the majority of these designated expenses and produce little or nothing. The way the trillion dollars is spent is the equivalent of a rapper with the newest Jordans, tens of thousands of jewels with expensive alcohol bottles and throwing loads of money at the strip club right after we get paid. No savings, no investments. No property, no business, no safety for children. There is no really solid plan for economic freedom. Just spending. In reality, the rapper can have his finances in some order, savings, 401k, college funds, home ownership, investments. You may have set aside a small amount just for the club, to create the illusion of wealth and attract more business. If this is true, you would be doing much better than the black community, basically wasting billions of dollars every year with no real ROI.

While I agree that there has been a general failure in the handling of blacks not only by politicians, but by the United States government in general. There are things that could be done now, with what we have, that could change the course economically. There are factors that can be applied to our trillion dollar economy that could prepare us to build, grow and sustain ourselves with an economic platform that will last for generations to come. These same factors can and should apply to your personal finances, the economy of your home, which is your business. Are you managing your household finances like a trip to the strip club? There are six principles of economic living that can sustain you as a family. I’ll cover them in a bit more detail in later posts, so stay tuned.