“Black women's sense of obligation to community and family is bothTell us something we don't know. The Baby Boomers generation probably feel this economic crunch the most. With parents still living, grown children who need help and sometimes grandchildren to support, its hard for those in middle age to save for retirement. Where does money to save come from? Especially when you're helping Pookie-n-nem with a little change.
extraordinary and commendable,” Rhonda Mims, president of the ING Foundation,
told the website Diversityinc.com.
“When you are pulled in so many directions financially, something or
someone has to pay the price. For black women, it appears their financial
well-being suffers.”
Black women are among the most loyal and caring women. So I really don't see us saying no to family in need, especially when we feel like we can afford to help others. The question is, though, can we really afford it? With the healthcare debate at issue in this country, can we really afford to take care of everyone else, at the cost of our own self-care? Especially in light of the fact that Social Security might not be around when the Baby Boomers (and Generation X, let's not forget about us) really need it.
Helen Adeyanju, a 59-year-old nurse, said she didn’t mind the cost.Sorry Helen, I'll have to disagree with you. Money definitely has value. Ask anyone who doesn't have any... or better yet, ask the family members and friends that call needing some help. When your car is broken down, you don't have food on the table or you've just lost your job, money definitely has value. But if you care for your family, friends, and the church first, you are saying that you value yourself last. Because at the end of the day, we financially support those things that we care about. Where our hearts lie, our wallets follow.
“I think it’s the right thing to do. Money has no value. It is what you do with the money that is valuable.
“One of the valuable things is to look after your friends and family and the church,” she said.
Take, for example, men. When you're dating or married to a man, if he has the money, he'll spend it on you (if he's not cheap, that is..). Sure, there's a culture of 'get what you can out of a man', but I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about a man taking care of his lady. Maybe black women giving so much to others financially is the result of men not doing so (either not having the ability, or refusing to.. which is another topic altogether). If there were more men in the church, in single-parent homes, black women wouldn't have to carry others so much. That's just my humble opinion, as a child of a single parent.
That's pretty much what I thought. A black woman might not feel broke, because her bills are paid, but how many of us are spending our money wisely? Especially in these stressful financial times, I'd think that sistas would be cutting back, especially on luxury goods. But apparently that's not the case. Since we're earning more money, have better education and more spending potential, black women should be in positions to live comfortably for retirement. But with supporting family and the church, and purchasing luxuries, how much are we investing in ourselves, in our futures?UK-based financial expert Albert Forbes told The Voice that giving the church and loved ones money is not the main reason why black women have financial problems.
“They are not giving out what they don’t have. They are giving what they have so that’s a good sign,” said Forbes, who runs financial firm Edward Forbes and Company.
“I think a large part of the problem is that they aren’t really taught about the value of money. Maybe if they were taught about managing money, they’d think more about how they spend it. That would make a big difference.”
We are not supported by a culture that puts the black woman first. Its time we created that culture for ourselves.
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