Here’s Why Americans Need a Basic Income During the Coronavirus Outbreak

By Anne Kim / The Washington Monthly Mar 18, 2020 Dramatic action is needed now to blunt the immediate pain of vulnerable workers. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Americans Should Be Freaking Out About Online Censorship

Larry Gross / Truthdig Aug 20, 2018 The approaches Facebook and Google are taking toward free speech are a serious cause for concern; scientists have found a song that reduces anxiety; meanwhile, our national debt has hit historic highs. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Poll: Blacks Think Civil Rights Goals Not Achieved

JESSE J. HOLLAND and EMILY SWANSON / The Associated Press Mar 30, 2018 Fifty years after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., only 1 in 10 African-Americans think the U.S. has achieved the goals of the civil rights movement he led. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Trump Can No Longer Pretend He’s Creating Jobs for Black Americans

Kali Holloway / AlterNet Feb 2, 2018 The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the African-American unemployment rate rose to 7.7 percent in January, from 6.8 percent in December. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Jeff Bezos’ Fortune Grows by $2.8 Billion in One Day

Emma Niles / Truthdig Feb 1, 2018 The Amazon founder and owner of The Washington Post, already the wealthiest person on the planet, gets a lot richer after the company's stock rises 2.5 percent. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

U.S. Middle Class Gets Richer, but Wealthy Do Even Better

By Christopher Rugaber / AP Sep 27, 2017 In the period 2013-2016, the wealthiest households pulled even further ahead, worsening the nation’s massive disparities in wealth and income. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

The Financial Diaries

Alexis Camins / Truthdig Apr 14, 2017 A new book explores the lives of families dealing with financial uncertainty and volatility. Dig deeper ( 7 Min. Read )

A Message to Working People From a Former Labor Secretary

Robert Reich / Truthdig Sep 6, 2016 Your typical wage is below what it was in the late 1970s, in terms of what it can buy Yet the American economy is twice as large as it was back then Your typical wage is below what it was in the late 1970s, in terms of what it can buy. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

How Universal Basic Income Could Help Build Better, Closer-Knit Communities

Staff / Truthdig Aug 4, 2016 An advocate of the idea cites numerous cases around the world in which money allotted to members of communities with no strings attached led to important gains in social cohesion. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Economic Averages Distort Views on U.S.’ Increasingly Unequal Economy

Staff / Truthdig Jun 9, 2016 The income, employment and real estate values measured in the richest parts of the country are pulling up the numbers that officials and lawmakers use to craft domestic economic policy. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Why the Racial Wealth Gap Is Widening — and Some Steps to Reverse It (Video)

Robert Reich / Truthdig May 2, 2016 Unless you earn enough to be able to begin to accumulate wealth, you can't get ahead. That's why kids from low-income families start out in life at a huge disadvantage -- especially children of color. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Minimum Wage, Minimum Chance: On Being Nickel-and-Dimed in 2016

By Peter Van Buren / TomDispatch Feb 16, 2016 When presidential candidate Bernie Sanders talks about income inequality, and when other candidates speak about the minimum wage and food stamps, what are they really talking about? Dig deeper ( 10 Min. Read )