Median Monetary Worth of Black Families 2001-2022

In 1900 there was no data being taken on the financial status of Black families. Du Bois made a sample from a range of towns in Georgia issuing paper surveys door to door to collect this data. As well, the notion of Black generational wealth would not have been possible. Now we can, in some part thanks to the generation Du Bois focused on. At that time Du Bois measured Black wealth by objects of value such as “household and kitchen furniture” as his original is titled. These are objects that would have been significant purchases, well cared for and passed down to younger generations. Today, Black wealth lives within the normative definitions we think of such as savings, investments, equity and assets. We update the original using a national survey conducted by the Federal Reserve. We reimagine Du Bois’s dynamic spiral in the form of a “Golden Ratio” diagram. The Golden Ration is a mathematical ratio found in various natural structures and patterns. What is revealed by our update is the precarious nature of Black wealth as we see it retract  in step with recent economic recessions.