Preparing for his second State of the Union address as president, Barack Obama said his message will center around the economy and generating job creation and growth within the US.

The State of the Union address is scheduled for 9pm, Jan.27. What do you want to hear from President Obama concerning the economy?

As the recession is forcing more people to look for work, some highly educated and skilled African-Americans are “whitening their resumes”, or changing their names and omitting their degrees from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU’s) in an effort to attract interest from employers.

From the New York Times:

Tahani Tompkins was struggling to get callbacks for job interviews in the Chicago area this year when a friend made a suggestion: Change your name. Instead of Tahani, a distinctively African-American-sounding name, she began going by T. S. Tompkins in applications.

Yvonne Orr, also searching for work in Chicago, removed her bachelor’s degree from Hampton University, a historically black college, leaving just her master’s degree from Spertus Institute, a Jewish school. She also deleted a position she once held at an African-American nonprofit organization and rearranged her references so the first people listed were not black.

With people desperate to find work and with a recently released study from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics stating the unemployment rate for college educated Black males (8.4 percent) is double the rate for college educated whites, you can see why some would downplay their ethnicity to land a job.

A study from the The Journal of Labor Economics suggests that Blacks and L applicants are less likely to get hired from managers of other races.

Even if  changing your name gets you an appointment with a human resource manager,  what happens when you have a face-to-face interview? You can’t hide your skin color.  Also, what message does downplaying your race send to Black children?

Express your thoughts below.

A new study released today by the U.S Census Bureau confirms what many already thought; the recession hit poor and middle class families the most.

According to an article about the story published by the Associated Press and picked up by other news outlets, “the wealthiest 10 percent of Americans — those making more than $138,000 each year — earned 11.4 times the roughly $12,000 made by those living near or below the poverty line in 2008, according to newly released census figures. That ratio was an increase from 11.2 in 2007 and the previous high of 11.22 in 2003.”

The report also indicates the national median income has decreased around $2,000 for every family in the poor/middle class demographic, while “income at the top 5 percent of households — those making $180,000 or more — was 3.58 times the median income, the highest since 2006.”

In his weekly address this past weekend, President Obama moved his attention away from hammering the need for health care insurance reform (as he has over the past few weeks) to talking about the economy. With a slipping approval rating, the President finds himself in a tricky spot.  How does he celebrate the improving economy without coming across as out-of-touch to a public still largely suffering the blows of the recession? “Yesterday, we received a report on our Gross Domestic Product (GDP),” he said, “that’s the measure of our overall economic performance. The President pointed to how his American Recovery Act contributed to the small but important improvements in the economy. We have begun to see how programs like his stimulus plan, he said, have put the brakes on the recession and led to the progress we’re seeing.  The President also warned that there are still necessary steps to take the ease the financial pains a lot of Americans are experiencing. He left on a high note, though, assuring Americans that if we take all the right steps, “the storm will pass” and we’ll see a brighter economic outlook in the near future.

Video: Watch the President’s Weekly Address

Obama’s Approval Rating Slips
President Obama, after enjoying astronomical approval ratings in the early months of his administration, now finds that public adoration is slipping. Six months into the job – and just when he needs the most love from the public and fellow lawmakers to win approval for his controversial health-care reform – his support on the issue has dipped below the 50 percent threshold for the first time, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll reveals. When it comes to the economy and the behemoth federal budget, the president’s ratings also have dipped in recent weeks. The slide seems to reflect rising concerns over spending and the dismal job picture. Only about 51 percent of Americans say they approve of the way he is handling the job situation. New figures shows that the unemployment rate is now in double digits, 10 percent, in some 15 states and Washington, D.C. Obama’s overall approval rating is at 59 percent; about 37 percent of the public say they are not happy with the job he’s doing.

At a time when the nation could use some good news about the economy, a real estate tracking firm reports a staggering new round of glum statistics about home losses in the United States. During the first half of this year, a record number of properties – 1.53 million – were in foreclosure or about to be foreclosed, RealtyTrac reported this morning. Alarmingly, that is nearly 10 percent more than the previous six months and about 15 percent more than during the same period last year. “What this means is, despite the intensity of the efforts on the part of government and lenders we don’t have a handle on foreclosures yet,” Rick Sharga, a spokesman for RealtyTrac, told CNNMoney.com. Perhaps the worst thing about the findings that that there were 1.91 million foreclosure filings – which equals about one of every 84 U.S. properties – is what it portends for the likelihood of an imminent housing recovery. There was no recorded improvement for June, the last month of the cycle. “More than 336,000 homes reported foreclosure filings, the fourth straight 300,000-plus month, CNNMoney.com reports, noting that filings were up 33 percent over last June and nearly 5 percent compared with May. “Foreclosure activity continues to increase to record levels,” James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac, said in a statement. “Unemployment-related foreclosures account for much of this increased activity, and the high number of borrowers who find themselves owing more on their mortgages than their homes’ are now worth represent a potentially significant future risk.” The raging recession is apparently the most powerful dynamo behind the housing problems. As more and more workers lose their jobs, the number of borrowers who are unable to make their payments grows. And, as home prices continue to tumble, an increasing number of homeowners owe more than their homes are worth, which in turn discourages some borrowers from repaying their loans.

Representatives from African, Asian and the Caribbean nations reeling from the worldwide economic crisis met at the U.N. headquarters in New York to make a plea. At the meeting the officials asked wealthy countries, who they say are to blame for the bad economy in the first place, to help out struggling nations financially. Money from exports have decreased and migrant workers don’t send as much money home as they used to, representatives said at the conference, reports the BBC. Poorer nations need “specific arrangements for the flow of resources to our governments,” said Belize Prime Minister Dean Barrow, who spoke for the Caribbean. There were mostly Latin American and Caribbean presidents and prime ministers at the conference, which was set up allow undeveloped countries voice their concerns, the BBC reports.

In this week’s address, President Obama discusses how America can create a good economic foundation through using clean energy. The move would reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil and create jobs in this country, he said.

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