A group called Fed Upis hoping to get the ear of the Federal Reserve this week. The Fed is holding its annual meeting in Jackson Hole and several of the central bank's officials have agreed to meet with members of the Fed Up campaign.
The Federal Reserve is currently considering raising interest rates, but Fed Up Field Director Shawn Sebastian said it’s not the time.
“You still see double digit unemployment in black communities across the country, you still see Latino families working full time and living under the poverty line. These are not conditions that spell economic recovery.”
Sebastian said an increase in interest rates would also harm people in Wyoming who are struggling with the economy. He added the Federal Reserve is out of touch with that reality and said the meeting in Jackson Hole illustrates that.
“You know they look at the economy and say things are going great and it’s time to make a change and raise interest rates. But they don’t see all the communities that are struggling. Jackson really facilities that sort of bubble, the top one-percent on average earns 213 times more than the average of the bottom 99-percent.”
Fed Up plans its own conference on Thursday and Friday at the Hatchet Resort in Moran, where it will discuss issues like how poverty impacts mental health and the criminal justice system.