News
What Georgetown's atonement means for the campus debate over slavery
Los Angeles Times, Friday, September 2, 2016"There may be some marginal value associated with individual institutions taking steps to atone for their particular sins, but the sins of slavery, Jim Crow, and sustained discrimination and racism are collective, national evils and should be addressed at that level," said William 'Sandy'... Read More »
This landmark prison study has one big problem
The Week, Wednesday, August 31, 2016"What is the root of black America's incarceration problem? Are racist attitudes among cops to blame? Disproportionately high poverty among black people? Or some combination of the two? Several months ago, three academics, Khaing Zaw, Darrick Hamilton, and William Darity, (statistical research... Read More »
'Banking black' becomes the latest form of social protest
CNBC, Saturday, August 27, 2016In the context of wealth, there is a persistent disparity between what black families earn when compared to other ethnicities. According to figures from the Urban Institute, the average wealth gap between white and nonwhite families exploded between 1963 and 2013 from $117,000 to more than $500,000... Read More »
Duke University Scholar Finds That “Beauty Is in the Ear of the Beholder”
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, Monday, August 22, 2016A new study by Robert L. Reece, a doctoral candidate in sociology at Duke University and former Global Inequality Research Initiative (GIRI) student, finds that when test subjects are told a person is of mixed-racial heritage, that person is perceived as more attractive... Read More »
Hillary Clinton's economic dream team
The Week, Monday, August 22, 2016"The election isn't here yet, but it's looking more and more likely Hillary Clinton will trounce Donald Trump in November. Speculation over who she might appoint as advisors and agency heads has already commenced. And like anyone else, I have got my own opinions about who Clinton should pick,... Read More »
White privilege as economic reality: It would take African-Americans 228 years to reach the same level of wealth as whites
Salon, Sunday, August 21, 2016"The black/white wealth gap is so extreme in the U.S. that whites who do not have a high school degree actually have more wealth than blacks who graduate college. Here, the tentacles of the near and far past — slavery and Jim and Jane Crow — combine with continuing racial discrimination in the... Read More »
Economist: Guaranteed living-wage jobs best way to address inequality
People's World , Friday, August 19, 2016"Saying existing job placement programs and unemployment benefits treat economic symptoms - such as income inequality - rather than causes, noted African-American economics professor Darrick Hamilton is proposing federally-guaranteed jobs, at living wages, for everyone. Creating and... Read More »
Albuquerque’s “Better Way" Experiment
Demos, Friday, August 19, 2016"For the past year, Albuquerque has been experimenting with a pilot jobs program for its homeless population called 'There’s a Better Way.' The initiative began as a push to connect the homeless with shelters and other assistance providers, but within a few months of its launch, the city also... Read More »
A Never Ending Wealth Gap Between Blacks And Whites In America?
The Final Call, Tuesday, August 16, 2016"'For Black families and other families of color, studying and working hard is not associated with the same levels of wealth amassed among Whites. Black families whose heads graduated from college have about 33 percent less wealth than White families whose heads dropped out of high school,' ... Read More »
Racial Wealth Gap Won't be Fixed by Education Alone
Institute for New Economic Thinking, Tuesday, August 16, 2016A new blog piece out today, "Racial Wealth Gap Won't be Fixed by Education Alone," by Darrick Hamilton, Faculty Affiliate of the Cook Center and Co-Investigator of the National Asset Scorecard for Communities of Color (NASCC) Project, responds the recent study The... Read More »