Disparate Recoveries: Wealth, Race, and the Working Class after the Great Recession

Abstract

What does it mean to be working class in a society of extreme racial wealth inequality? Using data from the Survey of Consumer Finances, we investigate the wealth holdings of Black, Latinx, and white working-class households during the post–Great Recession (pre–COVID-19) period that spanned 2010 to 2019. We then explore the relationship between working-class and middle-class attainment using a wealth-based metric. We find that, in terms of their net worth, fewer Black working-class households benefitted from the economic recovery than white working-class households. Among white households, the working class saw the greatest increase in wealth in both absolute and relative terms. Working-class households were less likely to be middle class as defined by their wealth holdings, and Black and Latinx households were also less likely to be middle class. For Black households, racial identity is a stronger predictor of wealth attainment than occupational sector.

A longitudinal analysis of the relationship between housing insecurity and physical health among midlife and aging adults in the United States

“…121–137). Additionally, research has found that Black households benefitted less from the post-Great Recession economic recovery compared to white working class households, and that Black households saw a much greater fraction of their wealth eliminated due to the Recession than did white households ( Addo & Darity, 2021 ). Since housing insecurity is worse for the health of Black adults, policies that improved housing security would disproportionately benefit Black adults and could reduce disparities in health.…”

Allostatic Load, Income, and Race Among Black and White Men in the United States

“…It is possible that upward or downward income trajectories may result in different patterns from the ones we identified here. Key historical events, such as the Great Recession, might play an important role, so future researchers might explore how they impact the association explored here because Black and White men were differentially impacted by them ( Addo & Darity, 2021 ; Thomas et al, 2018 ).…”

Is there wealth stability across generations in the U.S.? Evidence from panel study, 1984–2017

“…While there are ever more sources of accumulation for white families, my results for black families indicate effects of economic insecurity. Fewer routes are available for blacks to carry their wealth across multiple generations, which is a reminder of the missing black bourgeoisie (Addo & Darity, 2021; Darity et al., 2021), and the peculiar imbalance of portfolio asset types. An underlying context for that portfolio imbalance is that when slavery ends, black people in the South manage to move from abject poverty to wealth (Washington & DuBois, 1907).…”

“…Although wealth is an important source of economic security (Addo & Darity, 2021; Altonji & Doraszelski, 2005; Blau & Graham, 1990; Darity et al., 2021; Gale & Scholz, 1994; King & Dicks‐Mireaux, 1982; Oliver & Shapiro, 2006; Taylor & Meschede, 2018; Thomas et al., 2018; Shapiro, 2004), the literature on the intergenerational transmission of wealth is far more limited. A few scholars focus on the association between the wealth portfolio composition of parents and the portfolio of their children (Chiteji & Hamilton, 2005; Chiteji & Stafford, 1999).…”