Nearly $1.4 Billion In Coronavirus Relief Payments Sent To Dead People

The IRS sent nearly $1.4 billion in coronavirus relief payments to dead Americans, a new report by an independent government agency shows. The Government Accountability Office said the error involved almost 1.1 million checks and direct deposits sent to ineligible Americans. The payments were part of the coronavirus aid package passed in March known as […]

Your Bookshelf May Be Part Of The Problem

One of my favorite passages from Black Boy, Richard Wright’s poetic and searing memoir, which turns 75 this year, goes like this: I would hurl words into this darkness and wait for an echo, and if an echo sounded, no matter how faintly, I would send other words to tell, to march, to fight, to create […]

One Family’s Story Shows How The Cycle Of Poverty Is Hard To Break

Desiree Metcalf’s story is heartbreaking, but among the 46 million Americans who are poor today, her story is not unique. Metcalf is 24 years old. She’s the mother of three little girls — ages 6, 4 and 2. They all have different fathers. “That about sums me up, I think,” she says. Metcalf is sitting […]