MONEY MUSINGS
ESTHER MUKUMBO: How can families successfully navigate ‘black tax’?
It may seem an impossible balancing act at times, but black professionals can break the cycle by looking ahead
Given SA’s history, the reality is that inequality in the form of race, income, gender and economic opportunity is still rampant, 28 years after democracy. One of the manifestations of this income and economic inequality is “black tax” — a term despised among my friends and colleagues; we prefer to call it family tax. Essentially, it’s the extra money black professionals are expected to give every month to support their less fortunate relatives and extended family members.
We are taught ubuntu from a young age, to share with those around you. Not extending a hand in some instances means that those financially dependent on you go without. Especially at this time, as households grapple with high inflation, rising food prices, record petrol prices and economic hardship, the working class has no option but to lend a helping hand to support extended families...
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