The cost of higher education and the debt we take on for the chance at a better life is one of the most ubiquitously felt financial burdens of American life. But any way you slice it, Black and brown borrowers come out worse off than their white counterparts, often carrying significantly more debt for longer periods and getting less return on their educational investment.

With the net cost of this debt ballooning to more than one trillion dollars in the US, the Biden administration attempted to provide a blanket $10,000 in relief to all borrowers. The US Supreme Court ruled against that modest measure in June 2023. Anxious borrowers continue to wonder when and if relief will ever come.

Maurice explores student debt with two guests in this episode. Recent Howard University graduate Shyann McDonald helps us understand how the real costs of student loans are blurred, and how they affect students today. Then he talks with Deputy Executive Director and Managing Counsel for the Student Borrowers Protection Center, Persis Yu to understand the wider implications of debt, its long-term impact on borrowers, and how we might find our way out.

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