Wealth inequality is greater than ever in the United States and has become a pretty heated topic as everyone from laypeople to politicians share how they think the gap can be closed.
Georgia is one area of the country where these issues are epitomized. In the state, Black women on average are paid 63 cents on the dollar compared to white men. They are two times as likely to be living in poverty than white women in the state. Not only are Black women at risk of experiencing poverty, but they are at very high risk of being stuck in poverty. Black women in the state were the hardest hit in the recession and the slowest to recover.
That's where the In Her Hands initiative from the Georgia Resilience and Opportunity (GRO) Fund and GiveDirectly comes into play. These organizations are following the guidance of Martin Luther King Jr. and exploring guaranteed income as a means to close the wealth gap. In Her Hands is the largest guaranteed income program in the US designed by and for Black women, and it's the largest in the South.
The In Her Hands initiative is selecting 650 Black women across urban, suburban, and rural Georgia who are near or below the federal poverty line and providing them an average of $850 monthly unconditionally for two years. This will go on across three project sites, beginning in Atlanta's historic Old Fourth Ward, the neighborhood where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. grew up. Atlanta has the highest income inequality of any major city in the United States.
The program will generate qualitative research on the effect of guaranteed income on racial inequity and other financial and mental health outcomes, including unique program design questions not yet tested in the US context. It will be unique in that it will document the experiences of Black women exclusively.
"Our community members are incredibly resilient and resourceful, but many are grappling with deep and long-standing inequities that leave families with thin financial buffers," notes Hope Wollensack, executive director of the GRO Fund and a former senior strategist at the Economic Security Project and former director of the Old Fourth Ward Economic Security Task Force.
"Black women are among the most likely groups to experience cash shortfalls that make covering basic needs difficult. This isn’t the result of poor choices; it's the result of pervasive economic insecurity that has the sharpest impacts on women and communities of color and the people who live at the intersection of the two."
"We need solutions that tackle these problems at the root. Unconditional cash gives people the agency and freedom to take care of themselves and their families and audaciously pursue their future," Wollensack continued.
"Guaranteed income is a step toward creating a more just and equitable economy — when we center Black women in this work, our communities thrive."
"The challenges of poverty have been with us for generations. It feels like many of our approaches throughout history have mirrored the definition of insanity — trying the same things over and over and expecting different results," shared Pastor John Vaughn — executive pastor of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Ebenezer Baptist Church.
"'In Her Hands' is an opportunity to try a different approach — one that believes that people who find themselves in poverty are interested in not being poor and are in need of some daily support that they cannot afford in seeking a better life for their families and themselves. As a person of faith, I encourage us to lean into the lessons learned from international development — when you assist women, the entire family benefits."
The program believes it will make over $13 million in transfers when all is said and done. All parties involved are excited to see how that money can change the lives of these women. You can contribute to this monumental program with donations through GiveDirectly.
"GiveDirectly is excited to be partnering with the GRO Fund to implement the largest and longest guaranteed income initiative in the South, and the largest nationally that is focused on and designed by Black women," says US country director for GiveDirectly Sarah Moran, who is leading execution of the project.
"We continue to be humbled by the resilience of the Georgia communities we are engaging in this project, and look forward to contributing significantly to the growing body of research around the benefits of cash and a guaranteed income, particularly to populations that have been marginalized and underinvested in for generations."
