the state of communities of color in the u.s. economy

8/2/2019 The State of Communities of Color in the U.S. Economy

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The State of Communities of Colorin the U.S. EconomyStill Feeling the Pain Three Years Into the Recovery

Christian E. Weller, Julie Ajinkya, and Jane Farrell April 2012

www.americanprogress.o


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The State of Communitiesof Color in the U.S. EconomyStill Feeling the Pain Three Years Into the Recovery

Christian E. Weller, Julie Ajinkya, and Jane Farrell April 2012

About Progress 2050

Progress 2050, a project o the Center or American Progress, seeks to lead, broaden, and strengthen the progressivemovement by working toward a more inclusive progressive agendaone that truly refects our nations rich ethnic and

racial diversity. By 2050 there will be no ethnic majority in our nation and to ensure that the unprecedented growth o

communities o color also yields uture prosperity, we work to close racial disparities across the board with innovative

policies that work or all.


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Contents 1 Introduction and summary

5 Fallout of the Great Recession

16 Policy recommendations

23 Conclusion

24 About the authors

25 Endnotes


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1 Center or American Progress |The State o Co mmunitie s o Co lor in the U.S. Economy

Introduction and summary

We are currenly in he hird year o economic recovery ollowing he Grea

Recession and he nancial crisis ha upended domesic and world markes and

decimaed he global economy rom December 2007 o June 2009. Tree years ino

he recovery, he economic oulook is improving as economic growh is sabilizing

and job creaion gradually acceleraing. Ta said, Americas amilies, which have su-

ered or years rom high and long-erm unemploymen, remain in desperae need o

sronger economic growh or a prolonged period in he oreseeable uure.

Sable economic growh in he uure, however, will depend on having a srong,

broad-based middle class. While economic growh in he Unied Saes is on he

mend, he daa show ha he benes o his growh have no been equiably

shared. Many middle-class amilies, regardless o race or ehniciy, do no enjoy

he opporuniies needed or hem and heir children o ge ahead.

More disurbingly, he daa we summarize in his repor shows ha communiies

o color are subsanially less likely han heir whie ellow ciizens o enjoy he

opporuniies ha come rom having a good job, owning a home, and having a

nancial saey cushion in he orm o healh insurance, reiremen benes, and

privae savings.1 Tis dierence exiss because economic opporuniies eroded

aser or communiies o color han or whies during he Grea Recessionand

hose opporuniies have been coming back much more slowly or communiies o

color han or whies during he economic recovery. Our repor specically shows:

African Americans and Latinos persistently suffer from high unemployment

rates. Te unemploymen rae o Arican Americans is ypically wice as high

as ha o whie Americans, while he Laino unemploymen rae is abou 50

percen greaer han he rae or whies.

Slower job growth during the recovery leaves communities of color in a deep eco-

nomic hole. Employmen in he ourh quarer o 2011 was 88.9 percen o Arican


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American employmen in December 2007 and 91.4 percen o Laino employ-

men, compared o 93.6 percen or whies and 92.9 percen or Asian Americans.

African Americans enjoy fewer job opportunities than other groups. Te

employed share o he populaion was 52.1 percen or Arican Americans and

59.3 percen or Lainos, compared o 59.4 percen or whies and 59.9 percenor Asian Americans in he ourh quarer o 2011.

African Americans and Latinos earn less than others.Arican Americans

median weekly earnings were $674 (in consan 2011 dollars), and Lainos

earnings were $549. In comparison, whies earned $744 each week, and Asian

Americans earned $866 in he ourh quarer o 2011.

African Americans and Latinos swell the ranks of minimum wage earners. From

2009 o 2011wo years ino he recoveryhe number o Arican American

minimum wage workers increased by 16.6 percen, and ha o Laino minimumwage workers increased by 15.8 percen, while Asian Americans in minimum wage

posiions decreased by 15.4 percen, and whies only increased by 5.2 percen.

Household incomes have fallen drastically for African Americans since the

recession. Inaion-adjused median incomes or Arican Americans ell by 7.1

percen rom 2007 o 2009, aser han or any oher populaion group. Furher,

inaion-adjused median household incomes dropped anoher 3.2 percen

rom 2009 o 2010, which was as as or aser han comparable income drops

or any oher populaion group.

Poverty rates, already much higher for communities of color, rose faster in

recession and recovery than for whites.Arican Americans and Lainos showed

povery raes o 24.2 percen and 24 percen, respecively, in 2010, compared

o povery raes o 9.3 percen or Asian Americans and 7.3 percen or whies.

Povery raes rose aser rom 2007 o 2009 or Arican Americansby 2.4 per-

cenage poins or Lainos by 3.5 percenage poins, and or Asian Americans

by 2.2 percenage poins, compared o whies, whose povery rae increased by

1.6 percenage poins during he same ime period.

Communities of color have substantially less health insurance coverage than

whites. Te share o Arican Americans wihou healh insurance in 2010 was 20.8

percen, and he respecive share o Lainos wihou insurance coverage was 30.7


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percen. Tis compares o 18.1 percen o Asian Americans wihou healh insur-

ance and 11.7 percen o whies wihou healh insurance a he same ime.

The wealth gap between communities of color and whites widened sharply

due to housing market weaknesses. Te median nonwhie or Laino household

had $23,300 in wealh in 2009 dollars, less han one-sixh o he wealh o whienon-Laino households, which had $149,900 in wealh. Tis reecs a subsanial

widening o an already very large wealh gap beween communiies o color and

whies a he sar o he recession in 2007, when nonwhies or Laino households

owned abou one-h o he ypical wealh o whie non-Laino households.

Homeownership disappears fastest for African Americans during the recession

and recovery.A he beginning o he recession in 2007, he Arican American

homeownership rae was 47.7 percen, Laino homeownership was 48.5 per-

cen, and he homeownership rae or oher races was 58.6 percen, compared o

he whie homeownership rae o 74.9 percen. By he end o 2011, 45.1 perceno Arican Americans owned heir homes, 46.6 percen o Lainos owned heir

homes, and 56.5 percen o all oher races owned homes, compared o a home-

ownership rae o 73.7 percen or whies.

Communities of color are at a higher risk of losing their homes to foreclosure

than whites. In 2011 he oreclosure rae or Arican Americans was 9.8 percen,

or Lainos was 11.9 percen, and or Asians was 6.6 percen, while he oreclo-

sure rae or whies was 5.0 percen in 2011.

Retirement plan coverage is lower for communities of color than it is for whites

and continues to decline for African Americans. In 2010one year ino he

recoveryhe percenage o Arican American privae-secor workers who had

a reiremen plan a work was 34.4or Lainos ha number was 21.4 percen,

while i was 44.3 percen or whies.

According o all hese indicaors, he economic recovery is well ino is hird

year. Parsing he daa along racial and ehnic lines, however, shows ha varying

sorylines are emerging or dieren populaion groups. Arican Americans and

Lainos, or example, ypically have subsanially ewer economic opporuni-ies han whies. Te same can be said or Asian Americans, who also show

higher povery raes along wih lower raes o healh insurance coverage when

compared o whies. Tis suggess ha Asian Americans also have less access o

well-paying jobs han whies.


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Moreover, while economic opporuniies are beginning o improve somewha

or Lainos, Asian Americans, and whies, Arican Americans are he clear excep-

ionheir economic orunes coninued o decline in 2011. Te ac ha he

benes o he economic recovery are slowly spreading o all groups excep o

Arican Americans, a leas hrough he end o 2011, is reminiscen o he Arican

American experience ollowing he previous recession in 2001. During ha imeperiod Arican Americans economic orunesemploymen, income, wealh,

and homeownershipgrew much slower han hose o Lainos and declined in

relaion o hose o Asian Americans and whies.

Tis is why i is imporan or policymakers o ake noice o he dispariies and

sar o underake serious eors o boh close he economic opporuniy gaps

beween communiies o color and whies and o address in a subsanive way he

lagging experience o Arican Americans.

Focusing on hese concerns, we lay ou a series o policy recommendaions ahe end o his paper ha we believe will go a long way in addressing some o he

allou o he Grea Recession on communiies o color. Specically, we recom-

mend he ollowing:

Accelerae job creaion Expand, exend, and improve unemploymen insurance Raise he ederal minimum wage Increase access o aordable healh insurance Implemen comprehensive immigraion reorm o proec workers righs

We see hese recommendaions as imporan seps o ensure ha communiies o

color can also enjoy he benes o he recovery and begin o regain some o he

economic securiy ha hey los during he Grea Recession.


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Fallout of the Great Recession

African Americans and Latinos persistently suffer from high

unemployment rates

Te unemploymen rae is one indicaor o he labor markes srengh. Te labor

marke has been subsanially weaker or Arican Americans and Lainos when

compared o Asian Americans and whies hroughou his business cycle, which

sared in December 2007hough all groups sruggled hrough he wors reces-

sion since he Grea Depression and he ensuing weak recovery since June 2009.Te unemploymen rae or Arican Americans and Lainos in paricular remained

considerably higher han ha o whies and Asian Americans overall a he end

o 2011. Te unemploymen rae or Arican Americans was 15.5 percen, or

Lainos was 11.3 percen, and or Asian Americans was 6.9 percen in he ourh

quarer o 2011, compared o an unemploymen rae o 7.7 percen or whies.

In 2010, he las year or which daa is available or oher communiies o color,

he unemploymen rae also remained considerably higher or Souheas Asians,

American Indians and Alaska Naives, and Naive Hawaiian and oher Pacic

Islander communiies. Te unemploymen rae or Cambodians was 9.2 percen,

he Hmong communiy was a 9.9 percen, Laoians were a 9.1 percen, he

Vienamese were a 6.8 percen, Naive Americans were a 10.4 percen, and all

Pacic Islanders were a 9.9 percen.

Dierences by race and ehniciy were close o heir larges level a he sar o he

recovery in June 2009. In ha ime period Arican Americans had an unemploy-

men rae o 14.9 percen, compared o 12.1 percen or Lainos, 7.2 percen or

Asian Americans, and 8.5 percen or whies. Tis means ha unemploymen raes

o Lainos and blacks remained persisenly higher han hose o whies and AsianAmericans hroughou he recovery since June 2009.1,2

Unemployment is

highest for African

Americans and Latin

Change in the

unemployment rate

2007

4.3%

3.7%

8.7%

5.9%

African American

Latino

White

Asian American

Source: See endnote 1


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Te persisence o he gap in he unemploymen rae beween Arican Americans

and Lainos and hose o whies and Asian Americans also characerized he Grea

Recession. Te unemploymen rae or Arican Americans a he end o 2007

was 8.7 percen, and Lainos had a rae o 5.9 percen. During ha same period,

however, Asian Americans had an unemploymen rae o 3.7 percen, which was

acually beter han he rae or whies, which was 4.3 percen.3

While mos ohercommuniies o color also began he recession a a weaker poin han whieshe

unemploymen rae was 5.2 percen or Cambodians, 6.5 percen or he Hmong,

6 percen or Laoians, 3.5 percen or he Vienamese, 5.5 percen or Naive

Hawaiian and Oher Pacic Islanders, and 7.5 percen or American Indianshe

daa make i clear ha blacks sared ou in a much weaker labor marke han oher

groups when he Grea Recession sruck a he end o 2007.

Slow job growth during the recovery leaves communities of color

in a deep hole

All groups saw ewer or abou he same number o jobs in December 2011 han

hey did a he sar o he recession in December 2007, even hough he all

populaion groups had grownmeaning ha job growh, even when i recovered

rom he losses aer 2007, did no keep pace wih populaion growh during he

our years aer he recession sared. Arican American employmen in he ourh

quarer o 2011 was 95.4 percen o heir employmen in December 2007; or

Lainos i was 100.5 percen, and or Asian Americans i was 100.4 percen, com-

pared o 95.9 percen or whies.

Te Grea Recession was marked by unprecedened job losses or all populaion

groups, especially or Arican Americans and Lainos. Jobs ell by 5.8 percen or

Arican Americans rom December 2007 o June 2009, by 4 percen or Lainos,

and by 3.2 percen or Asian Americans, while hey ell by 3.8 percen or whies

during he same period.

Te economic recovery ha sared in June 2009 evenually saw job growh or

communiies o color and minor job losses or whies, highlighing he economic

sruggles o many diverse groups during he economic recovery. Arican Americanjob growh rom June 2009 o December 2011 was 1.2 percen, was 4.7 percen

or Lainos, and was 3.9 percen or Asian Americans, compared o a loss o 0.3

percen or whies during he same period.

The Great

Recession was

marked by

unprecedented

job losses or all

population grou

especially or

Arican America

and Latinos.


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African Americans and Latinos earn substantially less than

other groups

People no only wan o work, bu hey need jobs ha pay well enough o make ends

mee. Te job growh ha has occurred hus ar during he recovery is no provid-

ing jobs ha pay well enough o allow workers o do so. Median weekly earningsdened as he level o earnings rom work ha spli each populaion group exacly

ino halshed some ligh on he qualiy o jobs ha Americans hold.

Te numbers indicae ha Arican Americans and Lainos coninue o hold

lower-qualiy jobs and as a resul earn signicanly less money han heir Asian

American and whie counerpars. As o he ourh quarer o 2011, median

weekly earnings or Arican Americans was $617 (in consan 2011 dollars) and

or Lainos was $549. In comparison, Asian Americans made $866 each week,

while whies earned $774.4

Tis earnings gap is nohing new. I has sayed relaively sable hroughou he

recession and hus ar ino he recovery. Wages increased slighly or all groups

jus prior o and during he recession (rom 2007 o 2009), as is expeced during a

recovery when more low-wage workers are likely o lose heir jobs, driving up he

median wage or hose who sill have a job. Median weekly earnings or Arican

Americans were $274 in December 2007 and were $242 or Lainos. Te median

weekly earnings or Asian Americans and whies were much higher in December

2007, wih $408 and $344 in weekly earnings, respecively.

During he recovery rom 2009 hrough 2011, however, wages declined or

all groups, indicaing ha earnings have no kep pace wih inaion and ha

more low-wage workers are now geting jobs ha are driving down he median

wage. During his period median weekly earnings ell by 0.4 percen or Arican

Americans and by 6.7 percen or Lainos, compared o declines o 8.3 percen or

Asian Americans and 1.1 percen or whies beween 2009 and 2011.

Te real concern is wages ailing o increase as he recovery gains srengh. As i

sands, while more jobs may be creaed, i is imperaive ha hese are high-qualiy

jobs ha pay workers enough in wages o cover realisic living coss. High-qualiyjobs paying higher wages will allow amilies o spend more, o repay heir deb

aser, and o save more o inves in heir amilies uure, hereby conribuing

aser o a sel-susaining economic recovery.

Earnings gaps persi

Weekly wages in the ou

quarter o 2011


WhiteAsianAmerican

LAfricanAmerican

$866

$774

$617


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African Americans and Latinos swell the ranks of minimum

wage earners

Te lack o good job opporuniies or Arican Americans and Lainos is urher

underlined by he rapid rise o people working a or below he ederal minimum

wage, which does no apply o people who collec par o heir earnings rom ipsor o agriculural workers. From 2009 o 2011, ully wo years ino he recovery, he

number o Arican American minimum-wage workers increased by 16.6 percen,

and Laino minimum-wage workers increased by 15.8 percen, while minimum-

wage whie workers only increased by 5.2 percen. A he oher end o he specrum,

he number o Asian American minimum-wage workers decreased by 15.4 percen.

Tese changes ollowed much larger increases in he number o minimum-wage

workers among Arican Americans, Lainos, and Asian Americans as compared

o whies during he Grea Recession. Te number o Arican Americans working

a or below he ederal minimum wage grew by 141.5 percen rom 2007 o 2009,while ha o Lainos increased by 152.8 percen, and ha o Asian Americans

increased by 134 percen. In comparison, he number o whie workers being paid

minimum wage or less rose by 101.2 percen.

Household incomes have fallen drastically for African Americans

since the recession

Household income saisics provide he mos comprehensive measure o he

curren economic resources ha are available o households. In addiion o wages,

household income incorporaes oher orms o revenue received such as unem-

ploymen insurance, child suppor, social securiy, and renal income. We repor

he median household income, which is he income level ha splis all households

ino wo equal groupshal o all households have incomes ha are above he

median and he oher hal have incomes below he median.

No surprisingly, median household incomes were subsanially lower or Arican

Americans and Lainos han or Asian Americans and whies in 2010, he las year

or which daa are available. Te median household income or Arican Americanswas $32,068 in 2010 dollars and was $37,759 or Lainos. In conras, he median

household income or Asian Americans was $64,308 and was $54,620 or whie

households.5 Arican American median household income was more han 40


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percen less han he median household income o whies. For Lainos, he median

household income was abou 30 percen less han ha o whies, while Asian

American household incomes were abou 15 percen greaer han ha o whies.

Median household incomes in ac ell or all groups in he early sages o he

economic recovery rom 2009 o 2010, bu he income decreases were more pro-nounced or communiies o color han or whies. Arican American median house-

hold income was 3.2 percen lower in 2010 han in 2009, Laino median household

income ell by 2.4 percen, and Asian American median household income ell by

3.4 percen, compared o a drop o 1.3 percen or whies. Ta is o say, household

income growh did no keep pace wih inaion in he early sages o he economic

recovery, and he median household incomes o Arican Americans and Lainos ell

even urher behind hose o whies and Asian Americans.

Te coninued decline o inaion-adjused household incomes during he recovery

is especially worrisome since household incomes dropped sharply or all groups dur-ing he Grea Recession. Te daa show ha communiies o color suered greaer

relaive income losses han whies. Arican Americans experienced a 7.1 percen

decrease in he wo years rom 2007 o 2009, Lainos saw a 4.9 percen decrease, and

Asian Americans saw a decline o 4.3 percen. Tis compares o a median household

income drop o 4.1 percen or whies. All groups saw income losses, bu he losses

were much larger or communiies o color han or whies during he recession.

Poverty rates for communities of color rose faster during the

recession and the recovery than for whites

Te percenage o U.S. amilies living below he povery line increased during he

recession or all racial groups, bu communiies o color had much higher povery

raes, oen subsanially so, han whies.

In 2010, he las year wih available daa, nearly one in our Arican American

(24.2 percen) and Laino amilies (24 percen) lived below he povery line.

Conversely, povery raes among Asian Americans and whie Americans were 9.3

percen and 7.3 percen, respecively.6

Furher, povery was more widespread orcommuniies o color han or whies.

Te amily povery raes in 2010 ollow sharper increases in individual povery

raes or some communiies o color in he iniial sages o he recovery rom 2009

Poverty is up, especfor communities of

Poverty rates in 2010


White Asian

American

Latino

A

7.3%

9.3%

24.0%


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subsanially less secure posiion as compared o whie Americans because o heir

healh insurance siuaion one year ino he economic recovery.

The weakened housing market widens the race and ethnicity

wealth gap after 2007

Household wealh measures a households accumulaed sum o asseshings

such as houses, cars, socks, muual unds, and reiremen accouns minus a

households sum o deb such as morgages and credi card deb. Household

wealh indicaes how well-prepared a household is or he uureo eiher ake

advanage o new opporuniies, including sending kids o college or saring a

new business, or o weaher an economic emergency.

According o Federal Reserve daa rom 2007 o 2009, here was a subsanial gap

in household wealh beween whies and communiies o color. In 2009, jus ashe recession ended and he recovery began, he daa show ha he wealh gap had

expanded hroughou he recession. Te median nonwhie or Laino household

had jus $23,300 (in 2009 dollars) in wealhless han one-sixh o ha o whie

non-Laino households, who had $149,900 in wealh. Tis reecs a subsan-

ial widening o an already-large wealh gap beween communiies o color and

whies. A he sar o he recession, nonwhie or Laino households owned abou

one-h o he ypical wealh o whie non-Laino households in 2007.10

Addiional inormaion rom he Federal Reserve, based on more deailed

inormaion on he wealh gap in 2007, also shows subsanial dierences in

oal wealh beween communiies o color and whies beore he recession. In

2007 nonwhie or non-Hispanic households owned a median amoun o wealh

equaling $27,800 in 2007 dollars. Tis compares o $170,400 or non-Hispanic

whie households, showing ha communiies o color owned abou one-sixh

o he median amoun o wealh o non-Hispanic whie households. Te ypical

household in communiies o color owned beween one-sixh and one-h o he

wealh o non-Hispanic whie households beore he crisis go under way, and his

wealh gap seems o have widened during he crisis.11

Te widening wealh gap is largely a resul o a greaer risk or communiies o

color o exposure o he allou rom he housing crisis. Te Federal Reserve daa

do no provide inormaion on home equiy, bu a relaed 2005 sudy conduced

by he Pew Hispanic Cener also shows a widening wealh gap during he housing

According to

Federal Reserve

data rom 2007

2009, there was

substantial gap

household wea

between whites

and communiti

o color.


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crisis due o a greaer exposure o he housing marke and less home equiy or

communiies o color han or whies. Tese daa show ha Arican Americans

and Lainos were especially vulnerable o sudden and large price changes in he

housing marke. Tey owed larger morgages relaive o he value o heir homes,

meaning hey held less equiy in heir homes han whies did beore he crisis.

Whas more, communiies o color ypically held ewer asses ouside heir homes

going ino he nancial crisis, which mean ha hey had much less o a buer

in case somehing wen wrong. Median inaion-adjused home equiy in 2009

dollars or Arican Americans dropped by 23.2 percen, rom $76,910 in 2005

o $59,000 in 2009. Te median home equiy adjused or inaion or Lainos

decreased 50.8 percen, rom $99,983 in 2005 o $49,145 in 2009. In comparison,

he median value o home equiy or whies ell he leas17.6 percen, rom

$115,364 in 2005 o $95,000 in 2009.12

Homeownership declines fastest for African Americans during

recession and recovery

An owner-occupied house is oen he larges asse ha a amily can have. Tere

are, however, subsanial and widening dierences in homeownership raes

beween communiies o color and whies. As o he ourh quarer o 2011, he

homeownership rae was 73.7 percen or whies, while only 45.1 percen o

Arican Americans were homeowners. Te homeownership rae or Lainos was

46.6 percen, while 56.5 percen o all oher races owned heir homes.

Tese homeownership raes are lower han he homeownership raes a he end

o he recession in June 2009. A ha ime 46.5 percen o Arican Americans,

48.1 percen o Lainos, and 57.6 percen o all oher races owned homes.13 Tis

compares o a homeownership rae or whies o 74.9 percen. Te homeowner-

ship gap in ac widened during he economic recovery as he Arican American

homeownership rae dropped by 1.4 percenage poins, he Laino homeowner-

ship rae decreased by 1.5 percenage poins, he homeownership rae o all oher

races declined by 1.1 percenage poins, and he whie homeownership rae ell by

1.2 percenage poins rom June 2009 o December 2011.

Declining homeownership raes during he economic recovery coninued a rend

ha marked he recession, albei a a slower pace. Te Arican American homeown-

ership rae was 47.7 percen in he ourh quarer o 2007 jus beore he recession

Still a significant ga

in homeownership

Homeownership in the

quarter o 2011


White 73.7%

Latino 46.6%

African American 45.1%


17/30


began. Te Laino homeownership rae during he same ime was 48.5 percen, he

homeownership rae or oher races was 58.6 percen, and he whie homeowner-

ship rae was 74.9 percen. During he Grea Recession homeownership or Arican

Americans decreased by 1.2 percenage poins, or Lainos by 0.4 percenage poins,

and or oher races by 1 percenage poin, while he whie homeownership rae

sayed consan. While all groups homeownership raes have allen rom heir prere-cession peak levels, Arican American raes have allen mos sharply.

Communities of color are at greater risk of losing their homes to

foreclosure

Foreclosure raes are also a window on how well communiies o color ared

during he recession and are aring during he recovery. Te counrys oreclo-

sure crisis has subjeced communiies o color o greaer home equiy losses

han has been he case or whies.14 Te Cener or Responsible Lendinganalyzed housing daa exensively and concluded ha communiies o color

have been disproporionaely aeced by he oreclosure crisis. In 2011 he

oreclosure rae or Arican Americans was 9.8 percen, or Lainos 11.9 percen,

and or Asian Americans was 6.6 percen. While signican, he oreclosure

rae or whies was 5 percen. Adding he share o borrowers who are seriously

delinquen90 days lae on heir morgage paymenso he oreclosure raes

shows ha abou one-ourh o Arican Americans and Lainos, 14 percen o

Asian Americans, and 12 percen o whies are in serious danger o oreclosing

on heir homes in his housing crisis.

The differences in foreclosure rates by race and ethnicity are not

the result of income disparities

Dispariies persis among hese groups even aer conrolling or income and

credi raing. Te oreclosure rae was sill 1.8 imes higher or low- and moderae-

income Arican Americans han or heir whie counerpars, and he oreclosure

rae was 1.2 imes higher or low- and moderae-income Lainos han or whies in

he same income bracke. Tere are also signican dierences in higher-incomehouseholds. As o 2011 approximaely 10 percen o higher-income Arican

Americans, 15 percen o higher-income Lainos, and 7 percen o higher-income

Asian Americans who received loans rom 2004 o 2008 have los heir homes o

oreclosure, compared o 4.6 o higher-income whies.


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Gaps in retirement plan coverage worsen

Reiremen plans a work, eiher hrough dened-bene pensions or dened-con-

ribuion reiremen savings plans, are a crucial way or people o achieve uure

nancial securiy. Te percenages o privae-secor workers wih reiremen plans

provided hrough heir jobs decreased across all groups during he recession.Whas more, he percenage o Arican American privae-secor workers wih

reiremen plans a work has coninued he downward rend in he recovery. One

year ino he recovery (in 2010), he percenage o Arican American privae-sec-

or employees wih access o an employer-based reiremen plan was 34.4 percen;

or Lainos, i was 21.4 percen and was 44.3 percen or whies.

Tese shares have improved somewha or Lainos and whies bu have worsened

or Arican Americans when compared o gures rom 2009. Te share o Arican

American privae-secor workers wih a reiremen plan a work dropped by 0.8

percenage poins, rom 35.2 percen in 2009 o 34.4 percen in 2010. Conversely,he number o Lainos wih a reiremen plan increased by 1.1 percenage poins,

rom 21.4 percen o 22.5 percen, and he whie share rose by 0.3 percenage

poins, rom 44 percen o 44.3 percen during he same period.

Te reiremen plan coverage raes in 2009 were well below he coverage raes

in 2007 jus beore he Grea Recession. Te Arican American coverage rae

was 36.7 percen in 2007, 1.5 percenage poins higher han in 2009; he Laino

coverage rae was 24 percen in 2007, 2.6 percenage poins above he level in

2009; and he whie coverage rae was 47.1 percen in 2007, 3.1 percenage

poins above he level in 2009.


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Creating quality jobs

Creaing qualiy jobs or all Americans mus remain he op prioriy o policymak-

ers in 2012. I is imporan o mainain and accelerae job growh in he ourh

year o he economic recovery and he hird year o he labor marke recovery. Job

creaion is especially imporan or Arican Americans, Lainos, and subpopula-ion groups among Asian Americans, who have disproporionaely high unem-

ploymen raes. I is also crucial o emphasize he creaion o high-paying jobs, as

opposed o low-wage work, which goes hand-in-hand wih coninued suppor or

workorce raining and employmen programs.

Te daa show ha here is a large gap beween communiies o color no only in

employmen opporuniies bu also wih respec o earnings, benes, income,

and levels o povery. Low-wage jobs usually lack imporan benes such as healh

insurance and reiremen benes, and jus as imporanly, hey are no always a

sepping sone o higher paying work.15 Ensuring ha he jobs creaed provideemployees wih access o paid sick days is one way o reduce urnover and ease

pressure on amilies under he mos sress.16 Tis is especially rue or Lainos,

more han hal o whom are no oered paid sick leave and even more rue or

Lainas, who suer rom he leas coverage.17

Decreased economic mobiliy is mos pronounced among Arican Americans and

Lainos, one in our o whom live in povery. Tis suggess he need or policy-

makers o ocus on creaing jobs bu also on creaing good jobs o close hese gaps.

Te daa also show large dierences in employmen opporuniies beween

whies and Arican Americans. Tere are several possible explanaions or his,

and hese dierences have o do in par wih where he job cus occurred during

he economic recovery ha sared in June 2009.18 Many o he jobs los during

and aer he recession were (and coninue o be) public-secor jobs, which

hurs Arican Americans he mos.

Te ne gain in jobs since he economic recovery began in June 2009 has been

a resul o growh in he privae secor, no in he public secor. Sae and local

governmens have shed more han 600,000 jobs due o budge cus broughabou by lower ax revenue and curailed ederal aid.19 Te loss o governmen

jobs disproporionaely aecs Arican American workers, 20 percen o

whom have public-secor jobs, according o a sudy rom he Cener or Labor

Research and Educaion a he Universiy o Caliornia, Berkeley.20 Public-secor

The data show

that there is a

large gap betwe

communities o

color not only

in employment

opportunities b

also with respec

earnings, benef

income, and lev

o poverty.


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Improving unemployment insuranceArican Americans and Lainos are wo communiies o color ha experience

high unemploymen raes and longer periods o joblessness. Coninuing exended

unemploymen insurance benes or he remainder o 2012 is especially imporan

or hese groups. Presiden Obama and Congress have kep millions o unemployedworkers ou o povery by exending unemploymen insurance benes by passing

he Middle Class ax Relie and Job Creaion Ac o 2012.26 Trough work-

sharing programs more workers remain on company payrolls.27 Despie recen

improvemens in he labor marke, he realiy is ha or every job opening, here

were sill almos our people acively looking or employmen in December 2011.

Improving he unemploymen insurance sysem by reducing sae resricions

on unemploymen benes eligibiliy would also help unemployed Arican

Americans and Lainos.28 Because workers o color are more likely o be par-ime,

seasonal, or low-wage workers, hey are less likely o be eligible or unemploymenbenes. As a resul, unemployed Arican Americans and Lainos are 25 percen

less likely o receive benes han unemployed whies.

Te ederal governmen allocaed $7 billion o incenivize saes o expand heir

unemploymen eligibiliy crieria in he American Recovery and Reinvesmen

Ac o 2009. While hese incenives were a good rs sep, more could be done

o encourage saes o reduce resricions on unemploymen benes and o help

Arican Americans and Lainos a risk o being unemployed and wihou an income.

Boost the minimum wage

Arican Americans and Lainos are more likely o be employed a or below mini-

mum wage han any oher communiy. Raising he ederal minimum wage would

help creae beter jobs or hese groups and boos earnings across income levels.

Sudies demonsrae ha raising he minimum wage resuls in greaer demand

or goods and services across all secors, in reduced worker urnover, in increased

worker produciviy, and in improved workorce raining and invesmen. Tere

is also more han ample evidence showing ha a higher minimum wage does noadversely aec employmen or vulnerable populaions.29

Te ederal minimum wage would be $10.39 insead o $7.25 i i had kep pace

wih inaion since he 1970s.30 Moreover, unil 1980 he minimum wage aver-

Improving the

unemployment

insurance system

by reducing stat

restrictions on

unemployment

benefts eligibili

would also help

unemployed

Arican America

and Latinos.


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aged 117 percen o he hree-person ederal povery level; oday i sands a jus

87 percen, or $19,090 in 2012.31 Raising he minimum wage helps boos pay

scales even or workers earning a litle more han he minimum wage because he

minimum wage ses he so-called wage oor or all Americans.32

Te daa show ha Arican Americans and Lainos suer rom below-averagemedian weekly earnings, and since he beginning o he recession boh groups

have experienced an increase in he number o minimum-wage workers. Ye here

is one subse o his populaion in paricularly dire sraisArican American

men who are more likely o be employed in low-wage work due o labor marke

discriminaion, according o a repor rom he Economic Policy Insiue.33 Te

median wage o a ull-ime Arican American male worker is jus $14.90. Arican

American men could poenially see heir wages move more closely in line wih

heir whie counerpars, who make $20.84 an hour, by raising he wage oor se

by he ederal minimum wage.

Communiies o color could also bene rom a higher minimum wage due o

he secors where hey are employed such as home healh care. Te aging o he

baby boomer generaion has resuled in growing demand or workers employed

as home healh aides.34 Fully 95 percen o domesic workers, which includes

home healh care workers, are emale, oreign-born, and/or persons o color.35 Te

350,000 housand home healh aides employed in America make a mean hourly

wage o $10.25,36 bu in 2010, 17.5 percen were vicims o minimum-wage viola-

ions, and 82.7 percen were vicims o overime violaions.37 As his secor o our

workorce coninues o expand, raising he minimum wage will only become more

imporan o he persons o color holding hese jobs and our economy as a whole.

Health insurance

Arican Americans and Lainos lack insurance a wo and hree imes he rae o

whies, respecively. Te Paien Proecion and Aordable Care Ac o 2010 remains

an imporan sep orward in he gh or universal healh coverage. Once i is ully

implemened in 2014, individuals will have healh insurance coverage eiher rom

heir employers, rom he governmen hrough Medicare and Medicaid, or romheir own privaely purchased insurance, possibly wih some public subsidy.

Te 50 million individuals lacking healh insurance are especially suscepible o

economic and physical hardships. Sixy-wo percen o personal bankrupcies are


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he direc resul o illness or medical bills, bu he pain does no sop here.38 Te

uninsured also come a a high cos o axpayers, who in par shoulder he burden

o unpaid medical bills hrough publicly nanced repaymen programs. Finally,

he broader economic coss o diminished healh and shorer liespans o he

uninsured are esimaed a $207 billion a year.39

Our daa secion did no discuss he dierences in qualiy o healh insurance by

race and ehniciy, bu he Aordable Care Ac helps o level he playing eld wih

respec o healh insurance qualiy and hence presumably wih respec o healh

care qualiy. One way o reduce coss in he naional healh care sysem and o

ensure equal access o good care is o coninue suppor or communiy healh

ceners. Tese ceners provide qualiy, low-cos primary and prevenaive care o

underserved communiies. Communiy healh ceners save $24 billion annually

and creae economic developmen wherever hey are esablished.40

Communiies o color and low-income populaionshe wo groups leas likelyo be insuredboh rely heavily on communiy healh ceners. Arican Americans

make up 25.8 percen o service users, Lainos comprise 34.4 percen o users,

and hose below he ederal povery guidelines are 71.8 percen o hose using he

services o communiy healh ceners. Given he high raes o uninsured among

minoriy populaions, preserving and supporing hese ceners is a moral impera-

ive and smar economics.

Enact comprehensive immigration reform

Many immigran workers, paricularly hose who are unauhorized, end o be

concenraed in he lowes-wage occupaions, enduring very low wages in par

because o he ear o being red or, even worse, depored.41 When immigran

labor is exploied, all workers suer.42

Immigraion reorm would build real economic securiy or workers, boh U.S.-

and oreign-born, as i would proec all workers righs o air working condiions,

would provide proecion rom discriminaion, and would disallow employ-

ers rom exploiing heir legal saus.43

Equiable immigraion reorm ensuresha unscrupulous employer pracices and lowered indusry sandards are no

encouraged and ha unehical occupaional demands are no asked o immigran

employees. Operaional pracices ha undermine all workers righs would be

prohibied by comprehensive immigraion reorm.

Immigration re

would build rea

economic secur

or workers, bot

U.S.- and oreign

born, as it would

protect all work

rights to air

working conditi

would provide

protection rom

discrimination, a

would disallow

employers rom

exploiting their

legal status.


25/30


Likewise, comprehensive immigraion reorm would lead o increasing eco-

nomic sabiliy a he naional level. According o a recen sudy by he Cener

or American Progress, legalizaion would generae an esimaed $1.5 rillion in

cumulaive gross domesic produc more han 10 years aer is implemenaion

such ha he number and qualiy o good jobs or all workers would increase.44

Finally, immigraion reorm provides beter jobs or all workers by improving

indusry sandards in wages, saey, and benes. Absen a body o exploiable

workers subjec o he mos dangerous, low-paid, and physically demanding o

jobs, all employees can experience a raised economic oor ha ensures compei-

ive wages and benes or workers.


26/30


Conclusion

Te economy is almos a he end o is hird year in he recovery, and he labor

marke has been adding jobs consisenly or more han wo years. Te daa

shows ha many households are regaining some o he economic securiy los

during he Grea Recession. Te daa also show ha communiies o color have

seen slower gains in economic securiy han whie households. Tis is especially

rue or Arican Americans, who have experienced coninued declines in eco-

nomic securiy well ino he economic recovery, while all oher groups have seen

improvemens. Tis is jus anoher way o saying ha a reurn o economic growhis insufcien o li all boas, and ha policymakers need o sep in o make sure

ha communiies o color equiably bene rom he economic recovery.

Policymakers have righully ocused on rs making sure ha he economic recov-

ery ranslaed ino a labor marke recovery. Now, he challenge is o insiue policies

ha begin o erase he persisen inequiies beween communiies o color and

whie households such as disproporionaely slower job growh, low wages, lack o

employer-sponsored benes, and subsanially less household wealh. Policymakers

can sar o reduce he inequiies in economic securiy by race and ehniciy hrough

policies ha are argeed boh a specic problems and a paricular communiies.

Te daa, aer all, show signican variaion by economic securiy indicaors and

subsanial divergence in he economic securiy o groups o households.


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About the authors

Christian E. Weller is a Senior Fellow a he Cener or American Progress and an

associae proessor o public policy a he Universiy o Massachusets, Boson.

His area o experise includes reiremen income securiy, macroeconomics,

money and banking, and inernaional nance. He is also a research scholara he Universiy o Massachusets Amherss Poliical Economy Research

Insiue and an insiue ellow a he Geronology Insiue a he Universiy o

Massachusets, Boson. Prior o joining CAP, he was on he research sa a he

Economic Policy Insiue, where he remains a research associae. His academic

publicaions have appeared in heJournal of Policy Analysis and Management, he

Journal of Development Studies, he Cambridge Journal of Economics, heJournal of

International Business Studies, heJournal of Aging and Social Policy, and heJournal

of Economic Issues, among ohers. His popular wriings have been published in Te

New York imes, USA oday, and Te Atlanta Journal Constitution. Chrisian holds

a docorae in economics rom he Universiy o Massachusets, Amhers.

Julie Ajinkya is a Policy Analys or he Progress 2050 projec a he Cener or

American Progress. Her work ocuses on race, ehniciy, gender, and immigraion

poliics, and she pays paricular atenion o he changing demographics o muli-

culural socieies such as he Unied Saes and Wesern Europe. Prior o joining

CAP, she was an insrucor and eaching assisan a Cornell Universiy while

compleing a docoral program in poliical science. Her pas work has also ocused

on researching global and local womens movemens and he gendered impacs

o Inernaional Financial Insiuion invesmens in he developing world. She

earned her masers and her docorae degrees in governmen rom Cornell

Universiy, where her docoral disseraion examined he poliical behavior o

children o Muslim immigrans and heir campaigns or gender-jusice acivism

in Europe and Norh America. She also earned a bachelors degree in poliical sci-

ence rom Amhers College.

Jane Farrell is a Special Assisan or he Economic Policy eam a he Cener

or American Progress. She graduaed rom Emory Universiy in 2011 wih a

bachelors degree in poliical science. She spen he summer o 2011 working as

he domesic inern a he Cener or Economic and Policy Research. Jane alsoinerned a he Roosevel Insiue in 2009 and a he Naional Academy o Social

Insurance in 2010, where she was he income securiy inern. She has worked on

muliple poliical campaigns a boh he sae and naional level and is originally

rom Alon, New Hampshire.
http://www.publicpolicy.umb.edu/http://www.publicpolicy.umb.edu/


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Endnotes

1 We acknowledge that serious data limitations exist or communitieso color. Asian Americans, or example, are most oten amalgamatedinto one aggregate category, dominated by Chinese and In dianAmericans and excluding Southeast Asians. These groups romSoutheast Asia are oten let out o data collection because o com-plications with sample size comparisons. Where it has been possible,we have supplemented data rom the Bureau o Labor Statisticswith data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau and the American

Community Surveys one-year estimates on subpopulations to docu-ment the high rates o unemployment, poverty, and lack o healthinsurance coverage in these groups. Still, we realize that there areserious limitations to our knowledge about the economic insecurityo some communities o color and underline the need or betterdisaggregated data collection.

2 Annual estimates o groups o Asian American populations suggestthat some o these groups experienced much higher unemploy-ment rates than the aggregate data or Asian Americans indicate.

The aggregate unemployment rate or all Asian Americans stood at7.3 percent in the ourth quarter o 2010. But the unemploymentrate or Cambodians was 9.2 percent in 2010, or the Hmong was 9.9percent, or Laotians was 9.1 percent, or Vietnamese was 6.8 per-cent, or Native Hawaiian and other Pacic Islanders was 9.9 percent,and or American Indian/Alaska Natives was 10.6 percent. The 2009data again suggest substantial variations o unemployment rates inthe Asian American community. The average unemployment rate in2009 or Asian Americans was 7.2 percent. But the unemployment

rate or Cambodians was 7.4 percent in 2009, or the Hmong was 7.8percent, or Laotians was 8.8 percent, or Vietnamese was 6.1 per-cent, or Native Hawaiian and other Pacic Islanders was 8.9 percent,and or American Indian/Alaska Natives was 9.4 percent.

3 The unemployment rate or all Asian Americans was 3.7 percent in2007. But the rate or Cambodians was 5.2 percent, was 6.5 percentor the Hmong, was 6 percent or Laotians, and was 3.5 percent orthe Vietnamese. Similarly, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacic Island-ers had an unemployment rate o 5.5 percent, and American Indiansand Alaskan Natives had a rate o 7.5 percent.

4 Authors calculations based on Bureau o Labor Statistics, Medianweekly earnings (U.S. Department o Labor, 2012). All ination-adjusted data is expressed in ourth quarter o 2011 dollars.

5 Again, more detailed data on other racial and ethnic groups is lack-ing, but annual estimates on the American Indian/Alaska Nativespopulation, or instance, indicate that their median household

income is consistently substantially lower than their white counter-parts. In 2010 or instance, American Indian/Alaska Natives reporteda median household income o $35,062more than one-third lessthan whites median household income.

6 The aggregate data or Asian Americans again mask large variationsin this community. The Hmong population, or instance, had apoverty rate o 27.4 percent in 2010.

7 It is noteworthy that Asian American subpopulations had sub-stantially higher poverty rates than the average poverty rate orAsian Americans suggest. For instance, 19.2 percent o Cambodianamilies, 25 percent o Hmong amilies, 12 percent o Laotian ami-lies, 11.5 percent o Vietnamese amilies, 21.4 percent o AmericanIndian/Alaska Native amilies, and 12.6 percent o Native Hawaiianand other Pacic Islander amilies lived below the poverty line in2007.

8 Additionally, in 2009 annual estimates o other racial and ethnic

groups began measuring health ins urance coverage, so we knowthat signicant percentages o southeast Asians, American I ndian/Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiian and other Pacic Islanders alsolacked coveragespecically, 21.3 percent o Cambodians, 15.9percent o the Hmong, 18.5 percent o Laotians, 18.7 percent oVietnamese, and 13.5 percent o Native Hawaiian and other PacicIslanders lacked coverage.

9 The share o American Indian/Alaska Natives without health insur-ance stayed at 29.2 percent in 2010, the same level as in 2009thehighest share o any population without health insurance.

10 The Federal Reserve does not break down the data urther in itssummary o the latest data, and the data are not publicly available toallow researchers to analyze racial and ethnic breakdowns in greaterdetail. See Jesse Bricker and others, Surveying the Atermath o

the Storm: Changes in Family Finances rom 2007 to 2009. Financeand Economics Discussion Series (FEDS) (Washington: Board oGovernors, 2011), available at http://www.ederalreserve.gov/pubs/eds/2011/201117/201117pap.pd.

11 The Federal Reserve does not break down the data urther in itssummary o the latest data. Brian Bucks and others, Changes in U.S.Family Finances 2004 to 2007: Evidence o the Survey o ConsumerFinances, Federal Reserve Bulletin (2009): A1A56.

12 Home equity values are calculated only or homeowners not orall households. Rakesh Kochhar, Richard Fry, and and Paul Taylor,Wealth Gaps Rise to Record Highs Between Whites, Blacks, andHispanics (Washington: Pew Hispanic Center, 2011), available athttp://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2011/07/26/wealth-gaps-rise-to-record-highs-between-whites-blacks-hispanics/.

13 The Census Bureaus homeownership data does not include aseparate category or Asians. I nstead, these numbers report All

other races, a category which excludes those who are white, black,or Latino, and includes Asians, Native Hawaiian or other PacicIslanders, American Indian or Alaska Natives, as well as combinationso two or more races.

14 Center or Responsible Lending, Lost Ground, 2011: Disparities inMortgage Lending and Foreclosures (2011), available at http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/research-analysis/Lost-Ground-2011.pd.

15 Sarah Treuhat and David Madland, Prosperity 2050: Is Equity theSuperior Growth Model (Washington: Center or American Progress,2011).

16 Christian Weller and Mirra Levitt, Rebuilding Our Middle Class, OneSmart Step at a Time (Washington: Center or American Progress,2006).

17 Hector E. Sanchez and others, Trabajadoras: Challenges and Condi-

tions o Latina Workers in the United States (Washington: LaborCouncil or Latin American Advancement, 2012).

18 Christian Weller and Jaryn Fields, The Black and White Labor Gap inAmerica (Washington: Center or American Progress, 2011).

19 Authors calculations based on Bureau o Labor Statistics, CurrentPopulation Survey(U.S. Department o Labor, 2012).

20 Timothy Williams, As Public Sector Sheds Jobs, Blacks Are Hit Hard-est, The New York Times, November 28, 2011, available at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/29/us/as-public-sector-sheds-jobs-black-americans-are-hit-hard.html?_r=2; Steven Pitts, Black Workersin the Public Sector (Berkeley: University o Caliornia, Berkeley,Center or Labor Research and Education, 2011).

21 Michael Linden, Video: Did the Stimulus Work? (Washington:Center or American Progress, 2012), available at http://www.ameri-canprogress.org/issues/2012/02/stimulus_three_years.html.

22 Pathways Back to Work Act of 2011, H. R. 3425, 112 Cong. 1st sess.(Government Printing Ofce, 2011).

23 LaDonna Pavetti, Liz Schott, and Elizabeth Lower-Basch, CreatingSubsidized Employment Opportunities or Low-Income Parents:

The Legacy o the TANF Emergency Fund (Washington: Center onBudget and Policy Priorities and CLASP, 2011).


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24 Stephen Steigleder, Its Past Time to Reauthorize the WorkorceInvestment Act (Washington: Center or American Progress, 2011).

25 Workforce Investment Act of 2012, H. R. 4227, 112 Cong. 2d. sess. (Gov-ernment Printing Ofce, 2012).

26 Center or American Progress, The Importance o Extending Boththe Payroll Tax Cut and Emergency Unemployment Benets (2011).

27 Matt Separa, Stabilizing Employment and the Economy Even DuringTough Times (Washington: Center or American Progress, 2012).

28 Heather Boushey and Jordan Eizenga, Toward a Strong Unemploy-ment Insurance System: The Case or an Expanded Federal Role(Washington: Center or American Progress, 2011).

29 T. William Lester, David Madland, and Nick Bunker, An IncreasedMinimum Wage Is Good Policy Even During Hard Times (Washing-ton: Center or American Progress, 2011).

30 Raise the Minimum Wage: Facts, available at http://www.raisethe-minimumwage.com/acts/ (last accessed March 2012).

31 State and Federal Minimum Wage Bills, available at http://www.nelp.org/page/-/rtmw/uploads/State%26FedMinWageBills_1-28-2012.pd?nocdn=1 (last accessed March 2012).

32 National Employment Law Project, A Strong Minimum Wage CanHelp Working Families, Businesses and Our Economy Recover(2011).

33 Darrick Hamilton, Algernon Austin, and William Darity Jr., WhiteJobs, Higher Wages: Occupational segregation and the lower wageso black men (Washington: Economic Policy Institute, 2012).

34 Bureau o Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: HomeHealth and Personal Care Aides (U.S. Department o Labor, 2012),available at http:// www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Home-health-and-personal-care-aides.htm#outlook.

35 Excluded Workers Congress, Unity or Dignity: Expanding the Rightto Organize to Win Human Rig hts at Work (2010).

36 Bureau o Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics (U.S.Department o Labor, 2012), available at http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_621600.htm#31-0000.

37 Excluded Workers Congress, Unity or Dignity: Expanding the Rightto Organize to Win Human Rig hts at Work (2010).

38 Neera Tanden and Topher Spiro, The Case or the IndividualMandate in Health Care Reorm (Washington: Center or AmericanProgress, 2012).

39 Ibid.

40 Julie Ajinkya and Gabby Bryant, Cuts to Community Health CentersHarm Communities o Color the Most (Washington: Center orAmerican Progress, 2011).

41 Rakesh Kochhar, C. Soledad Espninoza, and Rebecca Hinze-Pier,Ater the Great Recession: Foreign Born Gain Jobs; Native Born LoseJobs (Washington: Pew Hispanic Center, 2012).

42 Raul Hinojosa-Ojeda, Raising the Floor or American Workers: TheEconomic Benets o Comprehensive Immigration Reorm (Wash-ington: Center or American Progress and Immigration Policy Center,2010).

43 Principles o Immigration Reorm, available at http://reormim-migrationoramerica.org/blog/about/principles/ (last accessed April

2012).

44 Immigration Reorm Crucial or New Economy, available at http://www.ibewlocal7.com/trumka_immigration_reorm_crucial_or_new_economy (last accessed April 2012).


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The Center or American Progress is a nonpartisan research and educational institute

dedicated to promoting a strong, just, and ree America that ensures opportunity

or all. We believe that Americans are bound together by a common commitment to

these values and we aspire to ensure that our national policies relect these values.

We work to ind progressive and pragmatic solutions to signiicant domestic and

international problems and develop policy proposals that oster a government that

is o the people, by the people, and or the people.

the state of communities of color in the u.s. economy

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