How much wealth does your family have now?

Thanks. Now we're going to compare your wealth to the average wealth in 2013 of white people, black people, and Latinos.

Since you haven't told us your family wealth, we'll continue with generic data. Below is the average wealth in 2013 of white people, black people, and Latinos.

How your wealth compares, by racial group
Average wealth, by racial group

Now let's extrapolate your household wealth 30 years into the future. You'll see that the average rate for each racial group differs drastically.

Since you haven't told us your household wealth, we're going to extrapolate the average American household wealth 30 years into the future. You'll see that the average rate for each racial group differs drastically.

It's tempting to argue that this chart merely shows that American policies helped the wealthy and it doesn't have anything to do with race. But race and wealth are so closely tied because policies — like discriminatory housing and labor laws — shaped who could accrue wealth and who couldn’t.

Your wealth, if it increases at the rate for different racial groups
Average wealth, if it increases at the rate for different racial groups

The chart above is eye-opening, but it doesn't tell the full story.

It assumes that all three racial groups are starting out from the same place. But that's just not true. So how much of a disadvantage did the average black family have?

The chart below makes your wealth the black household average and then adjusts the Latino and white wealth levels. From there, it projects 30 years into the future.

If your wealth were equal to the average black household's wealth...

But this extrapolation assumes that all three racial groups are starting out from the same place. But that's just not true. So how much of a disadvantage did the average black family have? This chart shows where the average household started out, and where they'll end up in 2043 if growth rates continue to hold:

That compounding divergence would be devastating, and a true threat to American democracy.

Here's that same chart, but using the actual average wealth for each racial group in 2013:

The actual average wealth for racial groups, if it increases at the same rate as the past 30 years
The average wealth for racial groups, if it increases at the same rate as the past 30 years

This is the chart that worries so many people. If these charts become true, something has gone very wrong. On a practical level, the American economy will suffer greatly because of it. On perhaps a moral level, we will have created two distinct and separate classes of people, with very little opportunity for the lower class to climb upward.