On the first payday of Black History Month 2025, Amber and Erika find themselves yet again debunking John Hope Bryant’s foolish, false assertion that “racism is a barrier that Black people can get over.” The second Trump presidency has people questioning that contention, but this episode demonstrates that racism has been entrenched in every aspect of American life - politically, economically, socially, and culturally - since its inception. Through discussion of three key eras in history, we demonstrate that racism was literally designed to be insurmountably imbued into every system and institution such that it would restrain Black people in every way. We first discuss Reconstruction, and this country’s deliberate abandonment of efforts to create racial equity. Next, we look at Woodrow Wilson and the racial regress back to de jure segregation in the Progressive era as racism cemented itself as a core tenant of mainstream southern, Democratic politics. And finally, the Reagan era reveals racism’s insidious makeover to become palatable to White evangelical Christians. Resentment over desegregation was tucked into pro-life politics and repackaged as family values and concern for the unborn. This historical conversation proves that racism is present at every turn and nothing - not even financial literacy - can save Black people from its impact. Tune in to get the lesson!

On this payday, Amber and Erika discuss the concept of "model minorities" and how it relates to the expectations placed upon Black descendants of enslaved people to use tools like financial literacy to “pull themselves up by the bootstraps”. They highlight the challenges faced by Black Americans compared to other ethnic minorities and immigrants. Dr. Patrice Sims, a sociologist, joins the discussion to explain her book "The Fallacies of Racism," which addresses the fallacies that perpetuate racial inequality. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the epistemology of ignorance and the need for addressing racism at individual, institutional, and societal levels. The conversation also touches on the impact of social media algorithms and the importance of education and community support. Tune in to join the conversation!

On this New Year’s Payday, Amber and Erika are busting another myth from our interview with John Hope Bryant. Bryant casually remarked, “If you go to the computer at midnight, the computer doesn’t know what race you are.” The evidence, however, suggests that that is false, and technology and AI is laden with the same biases and racism present within our society. Our guest, Memme Onwudiwe, a Harvard trained space lawyer and EVP of AI company Evisort, breaks down the basics of emerging AI and explains how bias can creep into seemingly neutral technology. We also discuss real examples of how technology bias has caused harm to people and the resistance of some developers to acknowledge the problems. Finally, we discuss whether AI can be used as a tool of resistance to remediate racism and human bias. Press play and join the conversation!

On this payday, Amber and Erika are continuing the “Myth Busters” series, debunking the erroneous statement that banks are race neutral and “don’t care about color”. Dr. Justene Hill-Edwards, University of Virginia professor and author of “Savings and Trust: The Rise and Betrayal of the Freedman’s Bank”, joins us to discuss the first bank in American history created for Black Americans. Not only does Dr. Hill-Edwards’ book offer insight into the challenges faced by the formerly enslaved during Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, but it also illuminates the racism and inequity that is foundational to the American banking system. Furthermore, her work demonstrates that financial literacy has been used as a tactic to shift blame to Black people for financial issues that we did not create and cannot fix. Listen in to “take a look, because it’s in a book” that banks do actually care about color!

This episode is supported, in part, by the Jane Nelson Institute for Women’s Leadership and the Texas Woman’s University Quality Enhancement Plan.

Amber and Erika are back on this payday debunking another one of John Hope Bryant’s false statements. During his interview, Bryant contended that slavery as an institution was race neutral and existed long before the colonized iteration primarily rooted in anti-Blackness. Dr. Kehinde Andrews, renowned author, scholar, and historian joins us to unpack why this statement is misleading and erroneously dismissive of the residual impacts of anti-Black colonization and enslavement. Starting with the Arab slave trade and feudalism, we trace the defining markers of anti-Black enslavement and its intentional enduring effects. Press play to listen!

Amber and Erika promised to spend the remainder of Season 10 debunking the financial literacy myths you heard in Episode 1. Well, we’re making good on that promise by interrogating John Hope Bryant’s claim that “financial literacy is the civil rights issue of this generation”…whatever that means. Broke-ish All-Star and our Black Liberation Media comrade, Dr. Jared Ball, joins us to unpack the fallacies and insidious white supremacy underlying the statement. Join us to learn why capitalism and a good budget won’t save us from this broken “ish”!

This episode is supported, in part, by the Jane Nelson Institute for Women’s Leadership and the Texas Woman’s University Quality Enhancement Plan.

Whew, chile! Broke-ish is starting Season 10 with a bang - literally and figuratively. John Hope Bryant, chairman and CEO of Operation Hope, the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of financial literacy resources, joins us to discuss the ins and outs of financial literacy. But the conversation gets interesting when Amber and Erika push back on Bryant’s belief in a colorblind and race neutral economic system in which anyone can succeed if they are financially literate. Throughout this interview, you’ll hear some of the most common myths on the virtues of financial literacy as a tool to achieve equity. But in this episode and for the remainder of the season, we’ll roll out the receipts to show that Black people’s broken “ish” is a feature and not a bug of this racist, capitalistic system. Lace up your boxing gloves and press play!

Broke-ish is ten and officially a preteen! And like most prepubescent knuckleheads, we’re still a (mostly) delightful mix of unserious, curious, determined, and ever-evolving. We open Season 10 by recapping some of the notable shenanigans that occurred during our break, including Diddy being remanded without bail, Eric Adams’s indictment, and CBS Morning’s interview of Ta-Nehisi Coates. Then we discuss what the Brokers can expect this season and how you can be apart of what we explore in Season 10z Press play to get the scoop!