The Silent Depression

In his 1968 speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop," Martin Luther King, Jr. told his audience the following:

"…In the human rights revolution if something isn't done, and in a hurry, to bring the colored peoples of the world out of their long years of poverty, their long years of hurt and neglect, the whole world is doomed…"

King's statement was highlighted in the sixth annual "State of the Dream" report (PDF), released on January 15 by United for a Fair Economy (UFE). The focus this year is on the so-called "silent depression": While the country may have been in an official recession since 2007, people of color have been in a recession for nearly five years.

Data in "The Silent Depression" report shows how years of structural racism and color-blind economic policies have played significant roles in the devastating wealth gap between people of color and white folks in the United States.

A survey of the statistics reveals that 24 percent of blacks and 21 percent of Latinos are in poverty, versus 8 percent of whites. Blacks, Latinos and whites have home ownership rates of 46.1 percent, 48 percent and 77 percent respectively. It's a bleak reality in which blacks and Latinos face disproportionately higher rates of zero or negative net wealth, incarceration and poverty than their white counterparts. They're less likely to make it into the middle class and, once there, are more likely to fall. They're also less likely to have health insurance than their white counterparts. Children are no exception: 34 percent of black children and 28 percent of Latino children are living in poverty, compared to 9.7 percent of their white counterparts.

This research supports what Richard Muhammad recently pointed out in a Final Call article: "Blacks and Latinos are more likely to be poor, stay poor and fall back into poverty from any class status than whites."

Why haven't we heard about this recession? The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) defines a recession as a decline in the economy that lasts for more than a few months, and is visible in measures such as real GDP, real income, employment, retail sales and industrial production. Yet, important factors such as economic inequality and asset levels are not considered official criteria for determining recessions.

This means that the realities of the wealth divide in the United States are not completely considered when evaluating the economy. Owning a home, business or property, stocks, bonds and inheritance all contribute to wealth, and are a significant predictor of intergenerational mobility and stability, but they aren't properly factored into the equation.

Youth Among Hardest Hit

The current recession is particularly detrimental for young workers. As Bob Herbert recently noted in a New York Times op-ed, "The economy cannot perform well with such a large cohort of young people condemned to marginal economic status."

Statistics from 2008 show that almost 2.2 million people between the ages 16-29 have already lost their jobs in this recession, while 4-5 million young Americans were neither in school nor in the workforce. A large majority of these disconnected youth (PDF) are blacks and Latinos in larger cities.

It's a chilling reality that raises a question: How can there be real equality in the country when the ways in which our economies are negotiated and defined continue to ignore factors that directly affect people of color? If the government is not looking at these statistics, and is not considering the country's history of systemic racism when creating economic policies, it's hard to imagine that people of color will benefit from them.

As young people of color, we are faced with the question of how to build wealth so we can have a more influential political voice, so that we can have savings and send ourselves and our children to college, so we can own our own homes. This becomes a difficult task when young people are constantly being laid off.

Dedrick Muhammad, co-author of "The Silent Depression" report and senior organizer and research associate at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) was recently interviewed about his findings on Democracy Now. When asked about the stimulus package and President Obama's foreclosure plan, he replied:
"I'm glad to see that the government realizes that they have to play a role in stimulating the economy. I hope they see that their role is also to stimulate greater racial equality in this country."

Muhammad's point is clear: We have to hold our government accountable and pursue outlets for transformation on local and national levels. We have to make the voices behind the "silent depression" heard by actively advocating for a reframing of economic policies, using affirmative action measures, rebuilding the housing market, building a "comprehensive national savings program," increasing funding for public education in low-income communities and creating jobs, a competent Social Security system and a universal healthcare program.

The report's exposure of the unacknowledged economic depression that afflicts people of color in the country sends an important message to its readers: The difficulties in overcoming the wealth gap remain insufficiently acknowledged on a policy level. We need to continue analyzing and questioning the ways in which socioeconomic issues are dealt with -- or not dealt with -- in the country. Finally, we must continue to advocate for social-justice driven policies so that ours and future generations will have access to a balanced economy.

Nina Jacinto is a freelance blogger and writer living in the Bay Area. She's a graduate of Pomona College and loves South Asian diaspora narratives, bargain shopping, and the Internet.