Hi there,

This month, Democracy Now! marks 29 years of fearless independent journalism. Presidents have come, gone and come back again, but Democracy Now! remains, playing the same critical role in our democracy: shining a spotlight on corporate and government abuses of power and raising up the voices of scholars, advocates, scientists, activists, artists and ordinary people working for a more peaceful and just world. If our journalism is important to you, please donate today in honor of our 29th anniversary. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much.

Democracy Now!

Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

Report: 90% of Minority-Owned Businesses Shut Out of Paycheck Protection Program

HeadlineApr 29, 2020

Criticism is growing over a new government program that was supposed to help small business owners receive low-interest loans to stay afloat during the economic crisis. The New York Times recently revealed more than 200 publicly traded companies received over $750 million in small business loans before the initial funding ran out. The Intercept reports many of the biggest beneficiaries have been major Trump donors, including the owners of the Ritz-Carlton in St. Thomas.

Meanwhile, the Center for Responsible Lending is estimating that up to 90% of businesses owned by people of color have been, or will likely be, shut out of the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program.

A handful of large companies who benefited from the small business loan program have agreed to return the loans after facing public backlash. The list includes the Los Angeles Lakers, Potbelly and Shake Shack.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top