Too many families believe they can’t move past financial struggles. We must shift this mindset. Here’s how.
By Brandee McHale, President, Citi Foundation
I consider myself fortunate to do what I do: crafting and executing the Citi Foundation’s philanthropic strategy to support the economic needs of low-income communities. I get to look out and see how we can help make our cities better and more inclusive. This requires having a clear view of the economic and societal problems we face and, equally as important, an understanding of the psychological toll those problems have on families and communities.
In both professional and personal conversations, I’ve noticed that many parents are no longer confident in a brighter future for their children. That’s not just my observation. In a recent NBC News online poll, nearly 60 percent of Americans said that today’s children in the United States will grow up to be worse off than they are.
How can that be, when the economy is showing concrete signs of rebounding? What’s so different today verses prior economic downturns that our belief in the American dream, once unwavering, is at risk?
