What Has the Black Community Done for the Black Community?

By Nicholas McNeal from AfricanGlobe.net

After seeing what happened in Wisconsin’s recall election, it is apparent to me as well as anyone else who was paying attention, that Money Governs America. While many of us are complaining that President Obama has done nothing for the Black Community, we should be asking ourselves, what has the Black Community done for the Black Community?

In my opinion, what I see us doing is having a national pity party, while expecting some savior to step in and give us living wage jobs, health care and education, among other things that we have the capacity and resources to get ourselves.

Blacks number 40 million living in America, or 12.3% of US population, which are mostly consumers.  Separately we spend   One Trillion Dollars ($1,000,000,000,000) a year. Take note that only 14 countries in the world have a larger economy.

Despite the One Trillion Dollars we control and add to the US economy , 1 in 5 Black families live in poverty, single Black woman w/children earns $25,000, 40% of families headed by a single mom are poor. What do think you think we do with all that that money????
Here is what we spent in 2009.

• 65.2 Billion on food
• 29    Billion on Automobile
• 29    Billion on Clothes
• 23    Billion on Health Care
• 6.1   Billion  on Electronics
• 3.3   Billion on Tobacco
•  3      Billion on Alcohol
• 995 Million on sports & Recreation
• 321 Million on Books

What could we do with the One Trillion Dollars?

$.02 of every Dollar spent in 2010 ($19 Billion) would pay for college for all Black College Students.

$.20 of every Dollar spent in 2010 could pay the debt of all African Nations. ($200Billion)

It was no easy lift, but we were able to advance our social and political position during the Civil Rights Era.  If we practice good stewardship of our considerable resources, we can change from a consumer people, to a self-empowered people, with the capacity and resources to conduct business and practice entrepreneurship, inside as well as outside of our communities.

Next time you have money to spend, think about how you can spend it in our Community, if you can’t do that, find a company that is known to hire Black people or find a Black person that works on a commission basis. Every Dollar spent in our community brings us closer to self empowerment.