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Sign: Student loans should be dischargeable through bankruptcy, like almost any other debt [1]
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Date: 2023-01-27
A student in front of New York's Columbia University, where tuition is $63,530.
President Joe Biden’s recent effort to cancel $20,000 in student loan debt—which has since been stifled by lawsuits by Republicans in various states—is now moving to the Supreme Court, with a final decision expected in May or June.
Student debt cancellation gets to two core issues in the United States: racial justice and income inequality. According to the Brookings Institute, Black households carry more student debt, regardless of income, which affects their creditworthiness and ability to save money, buy homes, and have more general financial freedom. Student debt cancellation is an equity issue, plain and simple.
For those who are struggling financially, the decision to declare bankruptcy is a difficult one. To add insult to injury, it is virtually impossible to discharge student loan debt, thanks to 29 years of maneuvering by Congress. Current laws force borrowers who need to discharge their student loan debt to prove to a judge that the education debt has created an “undue hardship.” The vague and high legal standard has been critiqued by a number of parties, including the American Bar Association.
The University of Michigan tells us that Black college graduates are equally likely to file for bankruptcy as those without a degree; essentially, the policies as they exist encourage Americans to take on debt to finance their education, but also make it virtually impossible for these students to discharge this debt even during extremely difficult financial times.
It would take an act of Congress to permanently right this wrong and change the bankruptcy requirement for student loan borrowers. Please sign this petition and ask Congress to allow student loan debt to be discharged through bankruptcy.
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[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/27/2149457/-Sign-Student-loans-should-be-dischargeable-through-bankruptcy-like-almost-any-other-debt
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