Looking over a recent discussion via Black Enterprise I had to share the topic and get some further opinions on what was considered black wealth. Just going to highlight on some key points in the discussion to bring awareness:
Warmed-over Myths of Black Wealth
Newsflash from CNBC's NEWBOs: If you're black and can't rap or play ball, forget about making it in America. "CNBC’s
NEWBOs: The Rise of America’s New Black Overclass, a special which aired last night, is wrong on so many levels. But its biggest disservice is that it is based on two stereotypical myths about black wealth that are just not supported by the facts:
The best–and even the only–avenue to real wealth for black Americans are through sports and entertainment. The majority of the “NEWBOs” featured on the program hit, run and jump for a living (the NFL’s Terrell Owens, Major League Baseball’s Torii Hunter and the NBA’s LeBron James) or perform on stage and recordings (Cash Money Records co-partner and rapper Bryan “Baby” Williams, contemporary gospel artist Kirk Franklin). "
"Black athletes and entertainers are among the richest black Americans and among the nation’s wealthiest Americans. The problem with this is that NEWBOs primarily focuses on the gross income of the subjects. However, the real measure of wealth is not gross income, but net worth—a person’s assets minus their liabilities."
"To be fair, to really identify the wealthiest black Americans would take a lot of digging—after all, truly wealthy black people, (including many of the corporate CEOs, Wall Street executives and owners of Black Enterprise 100s companies featured in Black Enterprise) are not eager to draw attention to their wealth. They’re quite happy to let Baby Williams and Terrell Owens get all the attention—and aggravation—that comes when people realize you’re earning big money."
Source: Black Enterprise
