Who's Apologizing for Slavery Now?
New Jersey could become the first northern state to apologize for slavery this week. State legislators are considering a bill that would effectively say the state is sorry for its participation in the American slave trade. "All that is being requested of New Jersey is to say three simple words: We are sorry," Assemblyman William Payne, who sponsors the bill, told The Associated Press. New Jersey had one of the largest slave populations in the northern colonies, was the last northern state to free slaves and was the last Northeast state to abolish slavery, which it did in 1846, according to the proposal. The proposed resolution expresses "profound regret for the state's role in slavery and apologizes for the wrongs inflicted by slavery and its aftereffects in the United States of America," reports The Associated Press. Legislators in Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina and Virginia have issued formal slavery apologies.
Why are all of these states apologizing for their role in the slave trade? Find out how slavery benefits white people today.
Free College Education: It's Not Just Harvard
Following Harvard's plan to substantially decrease its tuition fees for students whose parents earn $180,000 or less, officials of other colleges predict they will receive intense pressure to do the same for upper-middle-class students. Harvard's move will create parental price haggling, reports The New York Times. "Harvard has started to redefine the financial aid landscape, and it's redefined it in a way that is quite beneficial to the wealthiest institutions," Jenny Rickard, dean of admissions and financial aid at Bryn Mawr, told the Times. "It is just a handful of schools that can really respond this way, but it leaves others kind of pulling their hair." Harvard enjoys a $35-billion endowment, which helps it ease the financial burden for families. But officials at less-wealthy colleges say Harvard's discounting to the middle and upper-middle class could end up shifting financial aid from low-income students to wealthier students, make pricing seem even more arbitrary, and create pressure to raise full tuition to pay for all the assistance.
Find out how to get a free education at Harvard and a debt-free education at Princeton or Yale.
If You Are White, You Can Get More Painkillers
An analysis of more than 150,000 emergency-room visits over 13 years found that in all U.S. regions and for every type of chronic pain, doctors prescribed less pain medication to black and Latino patients than white patients, reports The Associated Press. The study appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Linda Simoni-Wastila of the University of Maryland, Baltimore, School of Pharmacy, said the race gap may reveal some doctors' stereotypes of black and Latino patients, suspecting they are more likely to be drug abusers than white patients. The irony, Simoni-Wastila told the AP, is that blacks are the least likely group to abuse prescription drugs. Latinos, however, are becoming as likely as whites to abuse prescription opioids and stimulants, she said. Get more diversity facts you can use.
(See also: Doctors Get Help Erasing Language, Hearing Barriers)
Is Rap Going Out of Style? Shrinking Sales Might Force New Lyrics
While consumer spending has slowed in many industries, one in particular is experiencing a greater decline in sales than expected: rap music. Sales fell 21 percent from 2005 to 2006, and that trend seems to be continuing, reports The New York Times. Rap music and its umbrella genre, hip hop, are known as big-money music because most of it is characterized as music obsessed with its own success. But a decline in sales could change that. Rappers may have to reconsider their lyrics, and eventually, executives will figure out a business model that re-engages the hip-hop consumer. "But if sales keep falling, more and more rappers will have to face the fact that they aren't addressing a crowd, just a sliver of one," reports the Times. Some rappers have banned the N-word from their content to appeal to the new market and its more socially responsible advertisers, but when it comes to the N-word, is there a double standard? Also, find out who is winning the war on offensive words.
Baby-Boom Retirement Is Here: How Long Will Social Security Last?
Baby boomers will begin cashing in their Social Security retirement benefits this year as the first of the generation turn 62 years old and becomes eligible to claim the benefits. The Social Security Administration projects that about 1 million of those first baby boomers, people born in 1946, will take the early-retirement option even though their monthly checks will be 25 percent lower than if they waited until they are 65, their normal retirement age, reports National Public Radio. Baby boomers comprise nearly 80 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964; they've had fewer children than their parents, and as a result, the payroll taxes flowing into the Social Security system won't cover promised benefits by 2017. The system will remain solvent, however, because the Social Security Trust Fund will cover the shortfall until 2041. Are you saving enough for retirement?
Read DiversityInc's Four Generations in the Workplace roundtable to learn more about how to manage generational differences and get proven tips for capitalizing on what each group has to offer.
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