Today, for the first time, a federal court told a state that its planned use of the controversial Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck System (“Crosscheck”) to purge registered voters likely violates federal law.
Empirical data showing policymakers, organizers, and progressives that there is clear public support for the notion that racism is a divide-and-conquer tactic creating distrust, undermining belief in government, and causing economic pain for everyone, of every color.
Millions of eligible voters remain unregistered. To fulfill the promise of the NVRA, states must do much more to ensure all Americans have a voice in our democracy.
The ability of college graduates to pay student loans isn’t simply a matter of earnings. It also reflects wealth — and differences that persist in wealth among racial and ethnic groups.
Accumulating student loan debt has become a typical part of higher education for students. As of March 2018, nearly 44 million Americans owed over $1.48 trillion in student loan debt, a number expected to grow as tuition rates outpace inflation and wage growth. Few people experience the hardships of student loan debt more than students of color. Approximately 77.7% of all black students use federal student loans to pay for their education. That group also has the highest loan default rates and lowest graduation rates among college students.
Washington, D.C. – On Wednesday, Mick Mulvaney, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), informed his staff that he would be shutting down the bureau’s Office for Students and Young Consumers and folding it into the Office of Financial Education. In response, Mark Huelsman, Senior Analyst and student debt expert at Demos, issued the following statement:
Rather than excluding students, progressive states like New Jersey have an opportunity to lead and expand the universe of the possible on issues like free college.
"The biggest issue facing police today is a crisis of public confidence. We have seen examples of racial discrimination, viral videos documenting misconduct, and widespread protest against incidents of police violence and the lack of accountability. Officers themselves report that it's a difficult time to be in law enforcement."
Between March 2017 and March 2018, union members’ approval of Trump fell 15 points, to 47 percent. In more than two dozen interviews with union members, many blasted Trump’s tax cut, arguing most of the benefits will flow to corporations and wealthy people. [...]
In Everyone’s America: State Policies for an Equal Say in Our Democracy and an Equal Chance in Our Economy, Demos lays out race-forward economic and pro-democracy policy agendas, centering the working class and people of color.
Six years ago today, on April 25, 2012, activists took to the streets to mark the country’s outstanding student-loan debt surpassing $1 trillion. And in the years since, many of the trends that pushed student debt levels to climb have persisted and in some cases gotten worse.
The 1993 law requires states to offer people the opportunity to register to vote when they interact with the motor vehicle agency and other state agencies. If someone wants to register to vote at the motor vehicle agency, the information provided on a driver’s license can also be used as a voter registration application for federal elections.
Mark Huelsman, a senior policy analyst at Demos, the left-leaning public policy organization, said he understands why debt-burdened students might take the risk of losing money in cryptocurrency markets. “The risk inherent in higher education now is higher than it ever has been," he said.
While the payoff for a good education remains, the costs are increasingly being borne by families. Debt, he said, is now basically required in order to earn a college degree.