Looking Back, Moving Forward: Black History Month in the 21st Century

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Black women are earning undergraduate degrees in higher percentages than any other group. Combined with the latest U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners — which found that Black women are the fastest-growing segment of small business owners in the nation — it appears that this group is poised for success.

While these statistics are promising, more must be done to help Black women reach new heights. Since Ursula Burns left Xerox in 2017, there is not a single Fortune 500 company with a Black female CEO. A 2018 study featured in the Harvard Business Review mirrors this statistic, revealing that Black females were the least likely of all Harvard Business School alumni to reach the most senior levels of their firms or industries. Additionally, the study found that many of the same challenges faced by Black women, including limited access to sponsors and assumed caregiving responsibilities, are also faced by female professionals and Black professionals overall. So, what is being done to help Black women rise to the top of their respective fields?

Exploring careers, building skills, discovering new passions and expanding personal and professional networks are a big part of the transition to adulthood. However, because of systemic barriers to opportunity, young men of color often face significant challenges when it comes to advancing their education and careers.

These challenges can have far-reaching effects. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, while unemployment rates decreased among men aged 20 to 24 from 2017 to 2018, men of color still have higher rates of unemployment compared to White men. In addition to employment discrepancies, earnings gaps also persist. An intergenerational study released in 2018 revealed that in 99 percent of neighborhoods, young Black men that grow up in families with similar incomes to their White counterparts earn less in adulthood.