Transcript
Marc Steiner: Welcome to The new Marc Steiner Reveal here on The Real News. I’m Marc Steiner, and it’s great to have you all with us. Some of us don’t realize that 43 million people in our country, in the United States, collectively hold $1.6 trillion in student debt, student loan debt. And I did say $1.6 trillion. And that reality in the midst of COVID got President Biden to temporarily cancel student debt when he froze repayments. That’s about to expire. And though in the process, it saved 37 million people $195 billion. Now, many want him to extend it to May 1. But others, like the Debt Collective, where our guest today is from, want him with a stroke of a pen to just cancel that and forgive student debt.
You will find a presentation stored on the April 4 by Loans Collective, which is a great debtor’s commitment. They’re contacting Chairman Biden to use their professional power to cancel the beginner financial obligation. To begin with a new discussion about i pay money for and you can financing college education, to ensure people are perhaps not overrun, inspired into the impoverishment, and straddled in debt only to complete college or university. Today, history February We produced a conversation having Umme Hoque, who is throwing director into Loans Collective and you will about how exactly to combat and you can cancel most of the college student financial obligation.
At that time, your debt Cumulative, payday loans Ionia MI a beneficial debtor’s commitment, planned the newest Biden Jubilee 100, a loans hit they done by one hundred people, one to for every away from Biden’s earliest a hundred weeks inside the place of work. Today regarding the wake of your April 4 demo which was held recently, Biden’s proceeded reluctance to get pen to paper and you may terminate student loans is found on the fresh new thoughts many men and women. And you may we are inserted by Ami Schneider, who has got among the many beginner financial obligation strikers, and you can prepared toward Financial obligation Cumulative. And Ami, welcome. Advisable that you perhaps you have with our company.
Way too many folks, even with having the pause, the brand new moratorium on the funds, so many people nevertheless cannot actually afford earliest basics, restaurants, safety
Marc Steiner: We’re going to play a little clip here from y, take us to that moment. What happened on April 4? Who was there? What did you do? Talk a bit about that day.
Ami Schneider: We had on Defenders, and several other organizations decided they were going to do a day of action in DC outside of the Department of Education to demand that Joe Biden keep his campaign promises and cancel student debt. And we’re not asking for just the $10,000 of cancellation, we’re asking for him to abolish all of it. So we were a broad coalition of different individuals who were in the city to bring that point to the Department of Education and bring that fight to the department because we’re sick of being ignored. Their bills are still adding up, inflation was at a record high. So really we’re just here to say, don’t take these loans out of cancellation, or don’t unpause the moratorium and force us back into repayment, and demand that we have cancellation and, ultimately, college for all.
Marc Steiner: Let’s talk a bit about where your struggle is at the moment in DC around that particular issue. There is a real split it seems even in Congress itself with people like Schumer, the majority leader in the Senate talking about wanting Biden to extend it, but you have Nancy Pelosi – And I found this really interesting – You’ve got Nancy Pelosi, who is opposing it because she is funded in part… Let me take that back. I don’t know if that’s a reason. but in part the people who oppose it who supported her campaign run a thing called Freedom To Prosper which opposes this cancellation. So talk about that political struggle. Where is it? What do you think is going to happen? And where are these battle lines drawn?
