Higher education has emerged as a vital conduit for achieving economic mobility in the United States. However, the current landscape marred by escalating tuition costs, crushing student loan debts, uneven returns on investment, and financial exploitation disproportionately hinders the financial aspirations of people of color, eroding their wealth in the process. This system perpetuates the Oppression Economy, reinforcing racial and economic disparities at every turn.

Building an inclusive higher education system demands more than aiding students of color in meeting the financial costs of admission; it mandates a paradigm shift towards a debt-free model that comprehensively supports them, encompassing both tuition and non-tuition expenses. While transitioning from tuition fees to debt-free education won’t singularly address the persistent post-college workforce inequalities experienced by students of color, including wage gaps with their white counterparts, it would level the playing field and transform higher education into a genuine avenue for economic mobility for communities of color.