Dear Dean Magazine: September 2023

F E A T U R E D : J O S H U A D O S S
Mcghee have been quoted saying “we would not have not
have had a financial crisis if it weren't for racism”, and she's
right. Racism breeds policy blind spots and economicmalpractice
that hurt white people too.
When we tell the story of debt-burdened white Americans
struggling to pay back their college loans or overwhelmed
white parents looking to save for their child's college fund,
we're always certain to mention the inflated costs of
college. What we often fail to mention is how it got this
way. In the 1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s, millions of families sent
their kids to college debt free through public investment.
Not only did folks leave universities without debt, this
well-educated workforce became the strongest middle
class the world had ever seen. Economists have found for
every tax dollar spent on free college under the G.I. bill, the
American economy saw a $7 return on investment . This
meant an economy where a bartender and a maid had
access to homeownership, retirement accounts, vacations,
weekends, and economic mobility. So, what happened?
Fueled by the racist reactions to the federal government’s
order for states to racially integrate their colleges, white
voters began supporting policies that effectively cut public
funding to keep Black students, who were
disproportionately poor, from clearing the financial
requirements to attend their universities. The result was a
tripling of college tuition and a $1.77 trillion tax payer
debt–a burden shared by white families all across America.
Racism breeds sloppy governance that hurts white people
too.
From racially-biased and inflated criminal justice
systems that require American taxpayers $300 billion
a year, to discriminatory lending practices restricting
Black entrepreneurs from investing back into the
American economy white people share, racism
frequently finds a way to financially burden the very
people it makes promises to promote. Any economic
analysis worth its salt will tell you: the playbook of
fiscal conservatism should begin with ending systemic
racism in America.
So, before you and Betty Lou Sue share a celebratory
Mountain Dew, make sure she knows that people of
color are not the only ones degraded by racism.
Joshua Doss is a Political Research and Communications
consultant from Chicago. He specializes in economic policy
communications and has worked in politics at the state and
federal level as a polling/message development strategist.
Using social media as a direct and unfiltered way to
connect with voters, Joshua has amassed well over 15
million views and 140k subscribers to his platform.
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DEAR DEAN MAGAZINE | SEPTEMBER 2023 | p.7