Hi, I am a fifteen year old black girl. Every other race has their own, especially white and Asian people. I am so sick of us complaining about what the "white man is doing!" Why not complain about what the black man is NOT doing. Okay, yeah us black women has the highest graduation rates in college. Okay, but that isn't bringing us up as a race! Black men are suppose to be our leaders not black women. We spend our money on stupid things, investing in other people's community, and then wonder why PEOPLE DO NOT RESPECT US! Asians do not help us... AT ALL! The amount of money black people spend every year on "Black Friday," is enough to pay ALMOST MOST or HALF of America's debt! So, that shows why we are in poverty! It is NOT the white man... IT IS US! Now, go ahead and call me a sell-out, or something else to bring back up your self-esteem. We need to stop justifying stuff, and making excuses. No one is hurting black people more than black people. We are literally one of the riches group of people, we just do not know how to spend our money. Our low self-esteem about ourselves is KEEPING US DOWN. When we start to embrace our blackness, than we can overcome. Every white person do not think that we are worthless! But, we think that of ourselves so we accuse everyone of it too. It's kind of like when you wear a color that makes you feel self-conscious, so because of that you think that every one is staring at you. YES, I KNOW RACISM STILL EXISTS.

Materialism has definitely been one of the main issues I've noticed among black people my age. They can't just get a car, they have to get a tricked out car with rims that cost more than the car. Too much money is spend on clothes, shoes, and designer bags also.

I think one way to fix this is to impart economic knowledge onto children as young as elementary school. Many people just don't know how to spend money properly. Many also don't even think about investing or saving. It's an important lesson to learn.

My motto is: "You can't take it with you when you die."

Not so much a question as a public service announcement.

1. Women are every bit as capable in leadership positions as any man. You're a female. Do you feel yourself incapable?

2. Black Friday is not what keeps our communities impoverished. Lack of education and job skills are more likely to blame than any single day of the year.

3. What do Asians have to do with anything?

4. Until we as a group wish things to change, they will not. Groups are made from individuals. Group change happens one family at a time within each individual household.

Other blacks have asked the same question. With so many absentee fathers, and mothers on welfare [a guaranteed income so why save for the future], AND a lack of education, self-esteem, AND PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY, there is a dearth of financial knowledge in the black community. {And financiers take advantage of this by targeting blacks. The Netspend card "I am in control of my money" & "It is better than traditional banking" , Montel Williams telling blacks that borrowing money at outrageous interest rates is good, (years ago) black civic leaders demanding an end to "redlining" {banks not loaning to underearning blacks in black area} so that many blacks started buying houses they could not afford, and now many are worse off than they were.

So maybe you can rise up and lead the way.

"Okay, yeah us black women has ..." is TERRIBLE English. Work on it.

And a correction: People do not respect blacks because of how they live their lives, and because they do not join mainstream society, NOT because of where they spend their money. {You do not have to embrace your blackness.} [ The rioters of Ferguson, and the large group of unintelligent* blacks that show support for thugs and criminals does not endear blacks to mainstream society. Protesters who block roads will not win any converts to their way of thinking. ]

*If a medical doctor says "If you can talk, you can breathe" quit running around promoting the "I can't breathe" slogan. Blacks should also adopt the "Pants Up, Don't Loot" slogan instead of "Hands up, Don't shoot" - especially when Saint Micheal Brown never went down, even with FOUR bullets in his arm. No black will concede that maybe M B was not really surrendering; but was using a ploy to buy time. {He did not even have to turn around to surrender.]

Sadly, dividing the races sells more media (air time and news print) so businesses (and Obama) promote division instead of peace and tranquility, where all could advance financially.

You bring up Asians but fail to mention that they are the best educated class in this country. Mom and DAD staying around once in awhile, working with their kids and expecting excellence does pay off. Verify this through the Department of Education website.