WASHINGTON– “Liquid wealth” – financial assets that quickly can be turned into cash in a time of need – is virtually non-existent among Black and Latino households. African Americans have a median liquid wealth of $200 and Latinos $340, compared to $23,000 held by Whites and $19,500 held by Asian-Americans.

Those are findings from the Center for Global Policy Solutions, an organizer of the 2014 Color of Wealth Summit which brought together members of Congress, business experts and advocates to address the nation’s growing wealth gap.

In part one of a two-part series, we explain the “racial wealth gap” which social scientists say has become self-perpetuating, as minorities continue to lag behind Whites even as the nation shifts to majority-minority over the next few decades.

See part two, regarding policy recommendations to address economic inequality by clicking below.

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