Black Unemployment Rate Increases 700% More than White

This weekend, I was on the radio with Rev. Jesse Jackson. He'd just completed a march in Detroit for jobs, peace and justice, only to find that his SUV was stolen upon arrival. But when I asked him if he was OK, his response was quite telling of the leader that he is: He simply said that the car doesn't matter at all when there are so many people suffering across America.

Well, the nation-wide suffering for African Americans has just intensified with the recent unemployment data delivered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It's most recent report showed that while white unemployment only went up from 8.6 percent to 8.7 percent, black unemployment went up from 15.6 percent to 16.3 percent. This increase is at a rate that is 700 percent higher than the increase for white Americans.

The numbers tell an interesting and sad story about the forgotten economic hardships being felt by black people all across America. First, black unemployment is nearly double that of white Americans. While the rest of America finds itself screaming in pain over unemployment rates between eight and nine percent, black America is asked to remain silent about unemployment rates as high as 15 - 16 percent. While U.S. government officials are not acknowledging African American economic hardship, the United Nations is. As of April, the UN announced that it is investigating whether consistent black unemployment in America is a human rights violation.

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10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myths That Just Won't Die

There is an awful lot of bad advice out there when it comes to managing your personal finances. Like rumors, these myths get told and retold as if they were true and spread like wildfire even though they are flat out wrong.

Click through our gallery to see 10 urban money myths that you would do best not to believe.

(To see the 10 myths, mouse over the photo at left and click on the right arrow.)

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10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 1: This is a Great Opportunity to Buy Stocks

If you believe that, I have some real estate in Florida (with just a little water on it) that's also a great buy. If your financial advisor is telling you that now is the time to buy, fire your broker. Are you kidding me?!

We know that you are desperate to make back some of your investment losses, but buying stocks in this environment isn't the way to do it. The bottom is nowhere in sight right now, and this is no time to invest new money -- don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 2: Everyone Needs Life Insurance

Think the insurance agents are behind keeping this money myth alive? Here it is in a nutshell: If you have someone who really DEPENDS on your income -- then, yes, you likely may need life insurance to help them maintain their standard of living if you're gone.

If you're single, retired or part of a dual income household with no dependents, you may not need life insurance at all. And, please, don't count on life insurance as a savings plan or as a source of "emergency money" that you can cash in down the road.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 3: Credit Counseling Will Hurt Your Credit Score

No, no, NO! We're going to scream this one from the rooftops till we get through! Credit counseling will not affect your credit score one iota.

In fact, Fair Isaac (the company that calculates credit scores) does not factor enrollment with a credit counseling service into their scoring criteria. However, some lenders will see that "in credit counseling" notation on your credit report as a red flag, so you may have trouble getting new credit while you are in counseling.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 4: Money Markets are FDIC Insured

A money market mutual fund is most certainly NOT FDIC insured. However, a money market DEPOSIT account -- which earns interest at a rate set (and paid) by the bank -- IS FDIC insured.

The fact that the names of these two vehicles sound similar may be the source of the confusion. Just suffice it to say that, basically, any deposit-type of account where your bank pays you interest is probably insured (but double check!) That includes any traditional type of bank account -- from checking and savings to CDs and IRAs. All of these are insured by the FDIC up to the limit of $250,000 per qualifying account.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 5: You Get What You Pay For

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, this money myth won't die.

While it's true that sometimes there IS a link between price and quality, more often than not, you can get a great product at a great price if you shop around and/or know what to look for.

Take generic drugs, for example. They often use the exact same ingredients as their higher-priced name brand counterparts, and many are considered to be just as effective when stacked up against the big names. So why pay more?

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 6: Co-Signing a Loan is No Big Deal

Think co-signing a loan for a friend or relative is "not a big deal"? Think again.

Your signature is essentially telling the lender, "Sure, come after ME if my loved one defaults ... or even misses ONE payment. I'll take care of it!"

And, yes, this even applies to your own children. We know of one couple who co-signed a loan for their grown son -- one day, he just stopped making payments. Guess who's now making those car payments for him ... to avoid ruining their own credit?

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 7: You Don't Need a Will if You're Leaving Everything to Your Spouse

More than half of Americans die without leaving one. Big mistake.

Don't make the all-too-common assumption that your spouse will automatically get everything -- the house, the car, your investments -- upon your death. Without a will, there's no guarantee. That goes especially if you have children and/or surviving parents. The law in most states will award one-third to one-half of your property to your surviving spouse and divvy up the rest between your children and your parents, if they're still living.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 8: Your Debts Will Be Wiped Out When You Die

It's a sad fact: Your debts may live on long after you do. Sure, some of your creditors may choose to forgive your debts, but more often than not, they'll try and collect from your estate.

If you have a trustee, that person is legally obligated to contact and pay off any debts before distributing money or property to your heirs. But, even if you don't have a trustee, your creditors can still stake a claim against your estate.

10 Urban Money Myths

Money Myth No. 9: You Need a Certain Amount of Money to Start Investing

Don't let this money myth rob you from investing in your future. Even if you can only invest a few dollars every month, you still have plenty of options.

As a first step, you can open an online savings account that pays interest. Or you can buy stock directly from a company, though a Direct Stock Purchase plan. You can also pick up a low-cost mutual fund for as little as $50.

10 Urban Money Myths

Black male unemployment is shockingly high, rising from 16.7 percent to 17.3 percent. This compares to a rate increase of 8.8 percent to 8.9 percent for white males. In other words, black male unemployment is 94 percent higher than the rate for white men. Unfortunately, this has become the norm for the African American male.

Black women also watched their unemployment rate rise from 12.9 percent to 13.2 percent, while white women saw no increase at all. At this point, white females have the lowest unemployment rate of any demographic group. Black women have an unemployment rate that is roughly 85 percent higher than white females.

The worst group of all are black teenagers. Their unemployment rate already stood at a startling 40.6 percent last month. This month, it rose to 45.4 percent, which is not only the highest unemployment figure of any group, it is also 90 percent higher than the unemployment rate for white teenagers, which held steady with a modest increase from 23.5 percent to 23.8 percent. The high unemployment rate for African American teens is likely one of the causes for massive amounts of teen violence and persistently high rates of black incarceration. When kids don't have jobs, they find something else to do. What they choose to do on their own is not always productive.

Related:
+Unemployment Rate Rises to 9.6% Despite 67,000 New Jobs
+Career & Employment Websites: Top Career Information

What's so interesting about having a black president is that the presidency has made us feel uncomfortable as a community about asking that our specific issues be addressed. I am not sure how bad things have to get, how many black people have to be homeless or how many unemployment applications we must fill out before we can get our leaders in Washington to realize that while 9.6 percent unemployment is horrible for the nation, 16.3 percent unemployment in black America is absolutely devastating.

What's worse about the recent black unemployment numbers is that they aren't going to go away. When this recession ends, and white unemployment drops to four or five percent, black people will still have unemployment rates which match or exceed the rates that white Americans are experiencing today. But while white privilege gives other Americans the right to moan, groan and complain about eight or nine percent unemployment, black Americans will be considered to be trouble makers for speaking against numbers of the same magnitude. Rarely, if ever, do we see a greater indicator of racial economic inequality than this.

There was a time when black people were legally considered to be three-fifths of a person. Today, we have an economic version of the Three-Fifths Compromise, which says that it is an acceptable and comfortable outcome that white unemployment will never be more than three-fifths that of black Americans. As long as this disparity holds constant, our government officials don't see a problem, and don't expect us to see one either. In all of the talk about helping the nation out of this recession, almost never has any advisor in President Barack Obama's economic cabinet even mentioned the idea of reducing the disparity between black and white unemployment. Their silence is both deafening and perplexing to the black people who put him in office.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.