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Is Middle Class Out Of Reach For The Black Millennial?
Last week, I stayed up until 4am while the collection of financial struggles I'm currently dealing with came to a head: How the hell am I ever going to retire comfortably if I can barely maintain my modest little lifestyle as it stands?
Retirement has been on my mind since I turned 30.
It's probably because I have been uncomfortably unemployed for the past four months and have been entertaining some serious concerns about my professional and financial future. For some reason, nothing quite gets my tear ducts burning as much as my parents asking how my job search going and seeing those Colonial Penn commercials.
Ever since my mom retired last summer, she has spent her days puttering around in her garden and taking day trips to New Jersey shopping malls with my father. These days most of her major decisions are whether to plant the yellow or the red begonias while my father sits on the patio catching up on the latest James Patterson novel next to their sunbathing Chihuahua. All that's missing from their lives is real estate in Kissimmee, Florida. For a few minutes each visit I find myself being lowkey jealous of the fact they're an example of what retirement looks like when it goes right. They've reached a point where they can actually enjoy the fruits of their labor.
A recent study revealed I'm not completely overreacting in my worry that my financial future won't look nearly as bright as my parents'. According to the article titled How Black Middle Class Kids Become Black Lower Class Adults, published in The Atlantic earlier this year, being raised black and middle-class may not give you a head start over your peers who were raised at a lower income level. In fact, “when black families attain middle-class status, the likelihood that their children will remain there, or do better, isn't high," it reads. Considering factors such as parental income, education and family structure, black have "substantially less upward intergenerational mobility and substantially more downward intergenerational mobility than whites."
In other words, being black and born into any kind of privilege doesn't guarantee you as much of a permanent spot in middle class as it may your white counterparts.
However, the study fails to give a clear reason exactly why this is happening. Economists' best explanations are criticisms that have been the center of conversations on Americans race and wage divisions for several decades: lower educational attainment, higher rates of single-parent households and geographic segregation. Basically, on average, blacks still tend to be less educated than their white counterparts and more likely to be raised in households headed by a single parent.
Lastly that little thing that goes by the fancy label “geographic segregation" means that we are less likely to live in neighborhoods, attend school with or socialize with those involved in successful networks resulting in less exposure to educational and professional opportunities.
While economists debate over studies, statistics and fancy terminology all I can lend my opinion on is what I am currently witnessing:
Working class ain't what it used to be.
Both my parents turned their two-year degrees into 20-year careers in the medical profession, making a decent salary where they could afford to get a new car every five or six years, take their daughters on a vacation every summer and live in a neighborhood where gunshots weren't apart of the regularly scheduled program. We weren't The Huxtables, but we did OK. But OK is looking more and more intangible to me and my fellow millennials. During my job search I've noticed a very unsettling pattern of positions that lists pages and pages of qualifications that ask candidates be prepared to present everything short of a kidney and a graduate degree just to start at a salary that's barely above minimum wage.
Another challenge to today's millennials is supporting parents while attempting to build a life of your own.It seems that those of us who aren't struggling to maintain the middle class lives are parents worked hard to set up for us are sacrificing our own growth to support our parents. Just last week a friend of mine who recently hit 30 questioned her independence since student loans, being the breadwinner for mother and sister, and wanting to actually enjoy a few of the dollars she spends 40 hours each working for left her choosing between rent for an apartment and a car note. She chose the car note to get to the job that will allow her to support her mom and sisters. And so the cycle continues.
The middle class American dream is beginning to feel just like that: Something us millennials are all getting a rude awakening from.
Although I still can't help but feeling like it's taking our generation so much more to get so much less, there is good news: Growing up in a recession taught our generation that structure and stability via the government aren't guaranteed. Because of that I firmly believe millennials have been forced to get creative about getting ish done.
The way the world is set up, there's a good chance that a retirement like my parents may be very well out my reach. But whether we're getting a cosmetic company contract via a YouTube channel or turning celebrity blogging into big business, most of us have been willing to sacrifice working toward a pension via a typical 9-to-5 schedule to bigger possibilities. We are questioning the stagnant ways of the workforce as we know it one “Why not?" at a time. Millennials are the masters of efficiency, creativity and innovation, so if you think about it, maybe we're selling ourselves a little short by making middle class the goal.
Featured image by Getty Images
- The Black Middle Class Is Leaving Its Brothers And Sisters Behind ... ›
- Dear Middle Class Black People | HuffPost ›
- The stalled, struggling black middle class | Urban Institute ›
- Losing The Black Middle Class | Fortune ›
- Middle-Class Black Families, in Low-Income Neighborhoods - The ... ›
- 'Working Hard Has Never Been Enough' for a Black Middle Class ›
- Are We Talking Enough About the Black Middle Class? - Pacific ... ›
Writer, sexual health superhero, and #BlackGirlMagic and #BlackBoy curator regularly featured on @Madamenoire. Toya can usually be found in between her earbuds, listening to trap music and refreshing her browser for concert tickets. Tweet her @thetruetsharee.
This article is sponsored by Hulu.
UnPrisonedhas returned for its highly anticipated second season, delving deeper into the complex dynamics of the Alexander family.
The series premiere comes a year after its debut season garnered rave reviews from fans and critics and earned record-breaking ratings for Hulu's Onyx Collective brand. UnPrisoned's success can be attributed to its raw, relatable themes and comedic appeal.
Inspired by creator Tracy McMillan's life, the show follows Paige (Kerry Washington), a therapist and single mother whose life takes an unexpected turn when her father, Edwin (Delroy Lindo) --who was released from prison-- moves in with her and her teenage son, Finn (Faly Rakotohavana).
Throughout UnPrisoned's first season, viewers witnessed how Edwin's incarceration deeply affected Paige's life and relationships. In the series, Paige unpacks her trauma through interactions with her inner child and her online followers. Meanwhile, Edwin is overcoming specific struggles with his own past that led to his life of crime, including a dysfunctional upbringing and his mother's arrest. As the Alexanders attempt to reconcile, new challenges arise.
This new season promises to further explore their unconventional family dynamic. Here are several compelling reasons why season two of UnPrisoned should be on everyone's watchlist.
The Alexander Family Life Is Still In Shambles
UnPrisoned's second season resumes where the series left off, with Paige grappling with the fallout from her troubled therapy practice and Edwin navigating life independently after moving out. Meanwhile, Finn faces his own challenges. The teenager is battling anxiety and seeking information about his father—a topic Paige avoids discussing.
The Alexander Family Are Attending Therapy To Resolve Their Underlying Issues
Amid the chaos in their lives, the Alexander family decides to mend their bond by confronting their past traumas. They seek professional help and attend therapy sessions with a “family radical healing coach,” played by John Stamos, a new cast member. This collective effort aims to unravel the complexities of their shared history and strengthen their relationships.
The process of unraveling each character's internal conflicts and their potential impact on future relationships may clash with Paige's textbook therapy approach. While Paige is used to being in the therapist's seat in both career and family, this forces her into the unfamiliar role of a patient during therapy sessions. This shift would compel her to look in the mirror and try a radically different approach.
The Alexander Family Learned A Big Lesson During A Therapy Session
In therapy, the Alexanders are tasked with addressing their individual traumas to salvage their remaining relationships. One of the family therapist’s eccentric suggestions was an exercise involving a family wrestling match. During this session, Paige faces tough questions about her refusal to share information about Finn's father.
While it's unclear whether this scene is reality or fantasy, the image of the family duking it out in the ring certainly makes for hilarious yet compelling television.
Paige Tries Dating Again Following Failed Relationships
Amid her life's chaos, Paige decides to step back into the dating field. However, her many attempts have left her with mixed results. The dating apps have turned out to be a fail, and an outing with her ex Mal (Marque Richardson), who is also her father's parole officer, doesn’t go quite as expected after he brings an unexpected guest – his new girlfriend.
The situation takes an awkward turn when Mal's new partner learns why the former couple split, partly due to Paige's self-sabotage.
UnPrisoned Is A Perfect Balance Of Comedy And Drama
As a dramedy, UnPrisoned takes a comedic approach to its heavy subjects. The show takes us on a ride with Paige's dating misadventures and navigating a friendship with her ex.
Other lighthearted moments include Edwin's attempts at CPR based on online videos and, of course, the antics of the Alexander family's unconventional new healing coach.
The second season of UnPrisoned is now available on Hulu.
UnPrisoned | Season 2 Trailer | Hulu
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Mariee Revere On Her History-Making Million-Dollar Sales And The Future Of MoonXCosmetics
If the name Mariee Revere sounds familiar, it's probably because you heard of her beauty and skincare brand, MoonXCosmetics, or you may have heard about her history-making achievement of making $1.8 million in less than eight minutes. But before starting her million-dollar brand, Mariee was just a teenager trying to cure her acne.
While she grew up in the skincare capital of the world, South Korea, Mariee didn't really experience breakouts until her senior year of high school. Like many people who get their first breakout, she didn't know what to do, and there weren't many products out there at that time. So she decided to experiment. What she didn't know was that what she came up with would ultimately be her ticket to success.
"When I graduated high school, I moved back to America, Georgia, and I ended up making, like, the oil, the Rose Galore oil, which is like the staple product of my brand. I don't know what made me make it, but I did, and it literally cleared my face up," she tells xoNecole in an exclusive interview.
"I end up selling it as a body oil first because, obviously, I'm 17, [and] don't have any background as an esthetician or anything like that. I just made a product that worked for me, but people bought it and was using it, and I reformulated it, and then it just stuck like with me."
While MoonXCosmetics is known for its facial products, it wants to expand to body care and home. It just released its new product, Moon-Gel body wash, and it's only up from there. As Mariee continues to grow the brand, it's more than likely that she will see more history-making moments. And so far she has.
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When asked if she feels pressure to obtain more of those milestones, she says yes and no. "I did $1.8 [million] again, and then I did $2 million but I feel like now, currently, I don't look at that as one of my goals anymore because [of] the headache and just everything that came with it, but I was thankful and blessed to have that milestone, but now I'm looking for more," she says.
"I want to say more reach than more like fast-paced sales. I do want that. Obviously, every girl wants that, but I do want to have a better overall reach for my brand because I did take two years off so I was able to learn, [and] study a lot of different things. See how things have changed from 2020 to now."
"I did $1.8 [million] again, and then I did $2 million but I feel like now, currently, I don't look at that as one of my goals anymore because [of] the headache and just everything that came with it, but I was thankful and blessed to have that milestone, but now I'm looking for more."
Another part of expanding for any company is hiring people. Finding the right person to help you can be a hassle, especially for business owners who are used to doing all the work themselves. Mariee can relate to this, and she touched on this topic in her documentaryThe Million Dollar Story. She recommends having someone be your "right-hand man" who you trust to handle the ins and outs of the company.
"I could say, definitely get, like a right-hand man to help you within the process because that really was what helped me. I never had a job. I literally was 18 now, being like, you know, the boss of over 30+ employees at one point in time, and I didn't know anything. I didn't know anything about no W-2s, no taxes, no clock in, clock out because all I [have] ever known was my brand," she explains.
"So I definitely partner with people who are very skewed and versed in those areas, and they helped me get through it. Even to this day, I still have my same person helping me with hiring, firing, [and] doing everything that I can right now because I'm still learning. But obviously people get jobs young, so they have way more experience than me, but still learning."
And though she is still learning, one thing she makes sure to stay on top of is being consistent. Consistency is what trips many people up when it comes to achieving goals, but Mariee says it's all about scheduling. Whether it's when to post on social media or email marketing, scheduling it out can make a world of difference. That same practice also works when planning out her future goals for the company.
"Right now, future goals would be to drop at least five more products before the end of the year. We always do outreach, where we do drives and all that, but definitely do way more this year, she says. "Then really dive into body [care], and then hopefully open up MoonXBody underneath MoonXCosmetics to let that branch out and be open and definitely get back consistent."
For more information, visit moonxco.com.
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