In the latest edition of Tales From TikTok, Zaynah Nicole is advocating for Black empowerment through the creation of generational wealth.
In a post published May 29, she delivered a harsh message urging her fellow Black community members to prioritize financial stability over divisive debates such as the 50/50 bill-sharing argument. Zaynah asserted that these debates distract from addressing critical economic disparities, noting that the median household income among Black families lags significantly behind other racial groups.
In the Tales From TikTok video, the highlighted issues such as disproportionate child support payments by Black men and identified spending habits on beauty, food and entertainment as barriers to achieving financial success and building generational wealth.
While the specific sources of her statistics were not disclosed, Zaynah’s message serves as a call to action for Black individuals to focus on improving economic outcomes and securing their financial futures, albeit tough to hear.
According to the Institute on Research Of Poverty, Black men do not pay the most in child support. In fact, Black custodial parents are less likely to have a child support payment order in place compared to their white counterparts. A 2017 study by the U.S. Census Bureau found that 40% of Black custodial parents had child support orders, whereas 57% of non-Hispanic white custodial parents did. However, the lower amount of child support paid by Black men compared to other ethnic groups can be attributed to persistent issues that continue to impact the financial wealth and success of both Black men and women — low income.
Individually and collectively, Black men and women struggle to earn.
According to a 2022 study conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, Black households had the lowest median income, standing at $52,860, compared to non-Hispanic Whites ($81,060) and Hispanics ($62,800).
Individually, Black men and women in 2023 earned 51,844 and $48672, respectively, earning less than their Asian and white counterparts while trailing slightly above the Hispanic community, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found, USA Today reported.
Where is the Black dollar going?
As Zaynah noted, while Black men and women exhibit great spending power as consumers and shoppers of products, there is a lot more contributing to the community’s disadvantage in wealth building.
In a 2012 study, it was found that Black households’ annual expenditures averaged $36,149, which constituted 79.8% of their average income before taxes. The largest portion of these expenditures was dedicated to housing ($13,530), comprising more than one-third of the total.
This was followed by transportation ($5,946) and food ($5,825). Neilsen noted that food, water and household items such as cleaning products made up a majority of Black consumer spending throughout 2017.
According to McKinsey, essential expenses such as housing, health care and education have risen from 38% in 1984 to 45% in 2019. Coupled with high inflation, stagnant wages and challenges such as crippling student loan debt, Black individuals are facing significant barriers to accumulating wealth-building assets like homes and investments.
Black wealth is rising.
Yet, despite all of these factors, there seems to be a notable change occurring within the Black community. According to the Federal Reserve’s Distributional Financial Accounts, total wealth increased for all racial and ethnic groups between 2019 and 2022. Data from the report indicated that median Black wealth rose from $27,970 to $44,890 during this period.
Business ownership, a critical component of wealth accumulation, has seen remarkable growth in the Black community since 2019, as reported by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Black business ownership has surged at its fastest rate in three decades, with the proportion of Black households owning a business more than doubling from 5% to 11% between 2019 and 2022.
Furthermore, there are positive signs of improvement in Black homeownership rates, which increased by 2 percentage points from 42.2% to 44.2% between 2019 and 2021. The latest data for 2022 suggests this trend of growth is continuing.
Zaynah recommended that both groups pursue higher education. Specifically, for Black men, she strongly advised attending trade school, while for women, she suggested obtaining an associate’s degree in a healthcare-related field like nursing to increase income. The TikTok star noted that careers in STEM could provide financial stability for Black households as many roles within the field pull in over $70,000, according to Indeed.
Instead of buying new cars, Zaynah encouraged her Black brothers and sisters to invest in land, pay off debt and secure life insurance, emphasizing the exploitative nature of the prison system towards both groups. Wealth can be achieved collectively, something the TikTok star claimed can happen quicker for families who live together under one roof.
Amid the upcoming election and heightened social and political tensions, Zaynah emphasized the importance of educating oneself on political issues within the Black community. She underscored that meaningful change often originates internally rather than relying solely on external sources. Additionally, she stressed fostering independence and self-reliance in both financial and personal matters.
“No one’s coming to save you,” the TikTok user added.
Zaynah wasn’t playing around! Were you listening? We were!
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