Atlaman
You took the words right out my mouth!
We middle class blacks are so materialistic its sad. We want to show off our Caddys, BMW Jeeps, our $400 suits et al and we do not
1) save money wise 2) have good credit (subprime loans were given to Blacks first...remember?) 3) Teach our children about their credit and about investing
I think it has alot to do with the type of jobs many of the black middle class have. Jobs that offer no security. Many of them work/ed in cities such as Detroit in factories and assembly lines that move with the market. If the market is good, the company is doing good, but if the market is bad, the company is doing bad (layoffs,closing)etc. We need to get jobs and encourage our children to get educated in careers that stay around regardless of how the market is or jobs that are the last to go such as teachers/educators,nurses,other medical professionals,some agricultural workers,lawyers,etc.
Also, it has to do with the fact that many of the black middle class has financially, but not mentally moved up. Many people who are in the black middle class are not educated beyond high school,but they got good paying jobs at a factory or somewhere and have financially moved up,but not mentally. So they buy the wrong things (too many material items),invest in things they can't afford (mcmansions,luxury cars), and don't have savings for themselves or their children. Not only that,but many of their jobs require them to work so much that they don't get a chance to learn (traveling,....
find a new hobby,take an interesting class,get certified in another career,etc)...Some don't even have time to spend with family,so as to teach their children something new. So basically many of us,like myself, should learn from this recession while we're still young because,trust me, there will be another one(in about 15-25 years) and we need to be prepared.
My husband owned a lawn care business on the side for seven years. At his peak he was making thousands of dollars a week, not we only bring in 1,000 a month. He fired his staff and does most of the work himself. Thank god I have a stable career and we didn't get messed up in the long run. He is now in theprocess of starting a tow truck business.
The middle class as a whole is feeling this recession more than anyone else. I've paid over $5,000 in Federal taxes alone this year and I claim dependents! Nevermind the fact that my state just implemented a 6% increase in sales tax. And my job just notified us that we are not getting any raises next year or no Christmas bonus. And I have a so called stable career(well at one time it was considered stable).
malletdiva02, I completely agree. There aren't too many middle class blacks who know how to make their money work for them beyond today. It's not enough to make it. We have to invest is assets rather than liabilities, set up financial vehicles that our children and their children can benefit from. Financial education is the key.
Don't be fooled by millionaire rappers who buy fleets of expensive cars or islands that no one else visits. Unless the cars are classics and kept in immaculate condition and the island is used for profit, those rich (not wealthy) rappers are just as financially ignorant as they were when they were broke.
