Racial Equity Commitment

Audit Report from JPMorgan Chase

Just over two years ago in October of 2020, JPMorgan Chase committed to bridging the racial wealth gap between white, Black, and brown families. This was called their $30 billion Racial Equity Commitment, also known as “REC.” The goal of this commitment was to help grow diversity in homeownership with affordable housing, promote small businesses, and create a workforce that would be more inclusive. Recently, JPMorgan Chase invited PricewaterhouseCoopers to perform an audit. How are they doing? Let’s find out.

REC’s Progress So Far

At the close of 2021, the progress of the REC had been reported to be upwards of $18.2 billion, well over half of the originally proposed $30 billion for the Commitment as a whole. The firm was able to quickly build their $18.2 billion by making refinancing more available and preserving affordable rental housing for minorities. This was done quickly while rates were low, which meant customers would save money on their mortgages. 

The REC created an initiative called the Preservation Program, which offered incentives to various building owners to keep their rentals affordable. This was done directly with their debt financing by offering rate discounts. This initiative has been key, as one of the largest hurdles for the REC was to secure affordable housing. 

These actions have led to tremendous progress for Black and brown families to secure home loans and affordable housing over the last two years. From 2020 to 2021 alone, JPMorgan Chase’s home lending portfolio for Black and brown families has doubled. 

Lending to Small Businesses

Not only is the REC dealing with the housing issue, they are also looking into making progress for small business loans. A business applicant’s race is not allowed to be collected as data by banks, however, the REC has counted lending progress among small business owners in the census tracts that have a majority of Black, Latino, and Hispanic populations. Therefore, the loans it counts toward the total of progress reported by the REC is with a more geographical approach, to give more loan opportunities to business owners within these communities.

The REC’s strategy for small businesses is to give greater access for businesses within minority census tracts to have access to more credit and business loans overall. Through the special purpose credit program, or SPCP, the REC’s vision has been realized in all 48 contiguous states. Not only does this program give more opportunities to minority business owners, but also helps to elevate poorer communities by bringing in new jobs and essential businesses.

A Long-Term Commitment

So far, the JPMorgan Chase Racial Equity Commitment has done much these past two years to close the racial wealth gap. The REC originally committed to five years, and it looks as if they are well on their way to hit the $30 billion goal. However, JPMorgan Chase has further committed themselves to this cause and assured investors, business owners, and homeowners alike that the work they’ve begun will continue well after their original 5-year plan. 

To build generational wealth takes long-term commitment and the firm understands that undeniable fact. The only way to establish long-term impact is to continue their work of ensuring racial equity, and it would seem JPMorgan Chase will do just that.

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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Financial Joy School proudly showcases the African Diaspora Alliance this week as one of our distinguished distribution partners. The African Diaspora Alliance began as the dream of two Baltimore natives, Moriah Ray and Jasmine Hall, who envisioned a world for low-income Black youth to have the opportunity to travel and study abroad, but not only that, to learn through awareness of the African Diaspora. 

The African Diaspora is the worldwide population of people who have roots in African descent. This alliance seeks to eliminate the “exoticization” of being “foreign” and “other”, and instead seeks to bring connection and unity throughout the Diaspora. The goal is to educate students of weighty topics such as institutionalized racism, internalized racism, differences in access to health opportunities globally, and much more.

Small But Mighty

Small but mighty, the African Diaspora Alliance allows the opportunity for the Black youth of Baltimore to travel into all the world to study in such countries as Cuba, Brazil, and even the continent of Africa. By traveling abroad, underprivileged Black youth are exposed to a larger world than their own poor neighborhood back home. By exposing these impressionable minds to realities of the Diaspora worldwide, a solid foundation of knowledge and wisdom is laid through this unique kind of education. The world is much larger than themselves, and through this program, a deeper and richer appreciation of the Diaspora throughout the world is forged. On top of that, these Black students also come to more fully appreciate themselves as a member of this worldwide community as well.

We at Financial Joy School have partnered with the African Diaspora Alliance through our Project 10,000 movement made possible by the Wells Fargo Social Impact and Small Business Foundation, which provides Black and brown youth and families the education they need to close the racial wealth gap and build generational wealth. Through this partnership, the Black youth of the African Diaspora Alliance now have access to Ruby Taylor’s LEGACY! Card game which teaches investing and empowerment for your finances through fun. 

Taylor’s LEGACY! Card game offers a wide array of career opportunities as well as investment opportunities, teaching the players how to make their money work for them. This education is vital for Black youth and families to think outside the box when it comes to being smart about their money. 

Coming Together

This type of teaching tool helps Black youth and families to think critically by expanding their own horizons, which, ultimately, expands the Diaspora as well. A partnership between Financial Joy School and the African Diaspora Alliance was only natural and fitting for Black empowerment, not only in Baltimore, but throughout the world. 

With strong and successful Black women such as Moriah Ray, Jasmine Hall, and our own Ruby Taylor leading the way, the door is now open for Black youth and families to find their own voices in the world, not only within their identity and culture, but through their finances as well. 

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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February is Black History Month and we’re proud to celebrate a man who has pulled himself up from rags to riches, Mr. Leon Howard, better known as Wall Street Trapper. As a young teen, Trapper lived in the ghettos of New Orleans and fell into the “trap” of dealing and crime. It’s the only life he knew. Convicted by the tender age of 16, Trapper served 10 years behind bars. While incarcerated, he struck up a conversation with another man, a White man, who boasted about his investments on Wall Street. While this man was in prison with Trapper for a short time, he would be wealthy by the time he was released.

That news got Trapper’s attention, and once Mr. Leon Howard was freed, he dedicated himself to learning about the stock market and investing money. Convinced there had to be a better way for Blacks to escape the “trap” and make wealth for themselves, he found the answer on Wall Street.

Most people chase after a fast buck, yet investing money is playing the long game. Here at Financial Joy School, we call this building generational wealth. This is exactly how rich people build their wealth, through investing, buying real estate, and buying stocks. The only thing holding Black people back from closing the racial wealth gap besides racism…is education. Wall Street Trapper will become a future Black historian by changing the narrative of crime, dealing, and prison time.

Wall Street Trapper Mission

Trapper’s mission is to educate and equip Black men and women to be smart with their finances by investing their money in the stock market. In fact, Trapper opened his own university called The Trapper University and offers classes and ebooks on how to invest. These courses are not focused toward those who are already rich, rather they speak to the truth and the reality of growing up and living in a poor and under resourced community. How do you break out? How do you succeed when poverty has always run in your family? How do you make a name for yourself?

Wall Street Trapper’s goal is to take the word “trap” and redefine it to empower the Black community that might view the trap as being inescapable. Within his own story, Trapper proves rising above poverty and crime can be done to become both a successful Black man and a successful Black entrepreneur through investing money in the stock market.

Building Wealth

Financial Joy School shares Wall Street Trapper’s vision of bringing financial education to black youth and families for building generational wealth. Investing any affordable amount can grow wealth. Growing wealth is the surest way to escape the “trap” of generational poverty. Through strong Black voices like Wall Street Trapper and our own Ruby Taylor, you too can build generational wealth for you and your family. 

There really is a “money tree” and it grows on Wall Street!

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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At Financial Joy School, we work with several distribution partners to bring our vision of closing the racial wealth gap to as many Black and brown families as we can reach. We are proud to showcase our partnership with the Black Fathers Foundation, whose purpose is to build up and support Black fathers and their families. 

The Black Fathers Foundation began with an idea. In 2008, Matt Prestbury opened a simple Facebook group. Over the years, the group grew to become a flourishing community of Black men, celebrating fatherhood and supporting each other on similar journeys. Prestbury’s goal was to create a picture of dedicated Black fatherhood, rather than the caricature of Black fathers portrayed by the media, on television, and throughout society. In order to do this, he banded together with a group of like-minded Black men posting pictures, giving advice, and uniting in a brotherhood—through fatherhood.

By 2018, Prestbury and his wife Kelly decided to take their community and create a non-profit organization, bringing love and fellowship to many more dedicated Black fathers all over the country. By 2019, their dream came true. The Black Fathers Foundation took off and has never once looked back.

The goal of this foundation is to enable Black men, through various resources and commitment, to strengthen their families and become a powerful presence in the lives of their children. Their objectives are threefold. 

First, to challenge the stigma of Black fathers in society. 

Second, to become a beacon of fellowship and support for strong Black fathers. 

And third, to present financial opportunities for Black fathers to further better themselves with scholarships, sponsorships, and grants.

Through their amazing generosity and a heart for Black men, Prestbury and the Black Fathers Foundation have partnered with Financial Joy School to teach Black fathers how to build generational wealth for their families. They have brought 100 men to Georgia to play Ruby Taylor’s LEGACY! Card Game, which teaches players how to invest their money while giving options of choosing diverse career opportunities. This gives players a snapshot of what investing and building wealth might look like within their own lives. Taylor created this card game to promote excitement within Black and brown communities for building generational wealth and closing the racial wealth gap.

By partnering with Taylor and Financial Joy School, the Black Fathers Foundation is one of Taylor’s Project 10,000 partners, a movement which began through a generous grant donated by the Wells Fargo Social Impact & Small Business Foundation. This grant allowed Taylor the opportunity to create and donate 10,000 LEGACY! Card Games to her distribution partners. Through the passion of both Taylor and Prestbury, Black fathers now have the opportunity to learn how to build a firm financial foundation for their children and families.

The bottom line is simple. In order for Black families to flourish, they need strong Black fathers and a strong understanding of how to make, save, and invest their money. Through the partnership of Financial Joy School and the Black Fathers Foundation, Black and brown families are given a promising future, not only for financial peace, but for the peace of mind of Black fathers everywhere.

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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This Valentine’s Day, Financial Joy School celebrates Black love and wealth by showcasing three well-known Black couples who have defied all odds to become icons, not only in their spheres of influence, but by their romance and wealth as well. These couples have found their own path to Black generational wealth in three major branches of society; entertainment, religion, and politics. Let’s take a look. 

Entertainment – Beyonce and Jay-Z

Who is more iconic in the music industry than Beyonce and Jay-Z? This power couple has proven their undeniable success both on their own and together. Beyonce and Jay-Z embody the spirit of Black empowerment by exploring powerful Black themes, not only in their music, but in their fashion and personas as well. Their bold and public love is inspiring within the Black community, and so is their fantastic success. Beyonce and Jay-Z have proven the sky’s the limit when it comes to building Black wealth and a love that lasts. Together, they have shattered the glass ceiling on closing the racial wealth gap.

Religion – Bishop O.C. Allen III and Husband Rashad Burgess

Bishop O.C. Allen III and his husband Rashad Burgess are the First Family of The Vision Cathedral of Atlanta. Known as a “religious trailblazer”, Bishop Allen is also an entrepreneur, an author, and a human rights activist. His husband, Mr. Burgess is successful in his own right as the Community Liaison for Gilead Sciences. As well as their success on the world stage, these men share a robust family and a loving home for their three children. Not only have they made history through their work and their church, but they’ve also made history by being chosen as Ebony Magazine’s first Same-Gender-Loving couple for their list of the “10 Coolest Black Families” in the country. Bishop Allen and his husband prove all you need is a big vision and a little faith to build Black generational wealth.

Politics – President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama

What list of influential Black couples would be complete without mention of the most powerful man in the world, the President of the United States of America? Barack Obama made history in 2008 when he was elected as the first Black president of the United States. His family likewise became the First Black Family to reside in the White House. During his tenure as President, the inspiring love between Barack and Michelle was obvious to one and all. Not only did they have a strong relationship and a beautiful family, they had built their lives from the ground up. Each of them studied law individually and became successful lawyers on their own. They did not let roadblocks or setbacks keep them from success. You might say tenacity was their middle name. From the day former President Obama was sworn into office, possibilities for success and wealth seemed endless for Blacks. No dream seemed too big to achieve, and no goal seemed completely out of reach. If a Black man can become the President of the United States, then he can do anything.

These powerful and influential Black couples have shown us three roads to success through three different avenues of society. They have modeled to the Black community that not only does love lead the way, but success is measured by hard work and never giving up on your dreams. With a little determination, a little wit, and a little grit, anyone can close the racial wealth gap and achieve Black generational wealth.

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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Black Girls Smile

Today, we celebrate Black Girls Smile, a non-profit organization and one of Financial Joy School’s distribution partners. Founded in 2012 by Lauren Carson, Black Girls Smile began as a way to reach young Black girls between the ages of 13 to 19 and educate them about mental health. According to Carson, there is a stigma within the Black community that young girls are “adultified” too early and become the heart, or the backbone, of the family before they’re mentally ready to handle such a load. Therefore these young Black girls feel as if they need to be tough and strong rather than being mentally healthy as the children they truly are. As a result of this adultification, many young Black girls find themselves depressed and stuck without a voice to express what they’re going through. This only leads to repeating the same broken patterns seen in generations before them. 

Black Girls Smile aims to change all of that. 

Ruby Taylor knows all too well the struggles young Black women face today. As a Black woman herself, Ruby has had to face struggle after struggle learning how to build her own generational wealth before opening Financial Joy School as a Black female entrepreneur. Her heart has always been educating youth and Black and brown families on how to build their own wealth and be confident enough to do so. In fact, you might say that’s what makes her affiliation with Black Girls Smile a winning hand.

Carson’s non-profit organization is distributing 200 decks of Taylor’s own LEGACY! card game, a product she offers on her website to teach youth and Black and brown families how to close the racial wealth gap. Through this affiliation, 200 young Black girls will be able to learn, not only how to build their own wealth, but how to believe in themselves as well.

Taylor believes, as does Carson, that young Black girls need to see, and be seen, by older, successful Black women. Representation is key to igniting these tender hearts into believing that they, too, can be successful in the workplace as a woman, and not only that, as a Black woman. Awareness is exactly what these young girls need, to know they are not alone and that they can dream—and pursue those dreams—with all their heart.

Easing the racial wealth gap through Taylor’s work at Financial Joy School certainly works hand-in-hand with easing the mental health load of our precious Black teen girls and helps them to understand their own worth. These girls are worthy, not only intrinsically within themselves, but also as our future CEOs, investors, and entrepreneurs. Taylor and Carson both envision a better world for Black girls where mental health does not go unchecked, and neither does growing generational wealth.

For more about Black Girls Smile, please visit Statnews, Newsy, and their homepage.

To learn more about investing, closing the racial wealth gap, and growing generational wealth for Black and brown families, please visit Financial Joy School and become a part of our financial family.

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