a severe toll on families all across america, but one group has been hit especially hard. overall the jobless rate is 9.2% in this country for the past 29 straight months, but among african-americans it is now just over 16%, that is nearly one in six, double the rate for whites. senior national correspondent john roberts is live in atlanta with a look at this. john? reporter: you know, jon, it s a particularly tragic situation driven home by the report this week that for all those african-americans who have spent the last three decades trying to climb the click ladder, this recession has virtually wiped out those gains. you pointed to an up employment rate of unemployment rate of slightly more than 16% nationally. it s particularly bad in charlotte, north carolina, a place where one in five 20% of african-americans are out of work. my last day was july 29, 2009, i ve been out of work two years.
now, allison. the urban league this week found that this recession has literally erased 30 years of economic gains among african-americans. we found the problem was particularly acute in the city of charlotte, north carolina, where now 20% of african-americans are out of work. our last day was july 29, 2009, i ve been out of work two years. reporter: derek fox is the face of an unemployment rate that has reached deep into charlotte s black middle class. since he was laid off, he has contacted more than a thousand companies looking for work. so far not even a nibble. i got out of school, didn t get the jobs i was looking for. then i went back, got an mba degree, you know, and i m almost like, wow, was this really worth it? reporter: charlotte was the promised land for well educated blacks or those who wanted to climb the ladder by improving their education, but the financial crisis, recession and government budget cuts hit african-american workers
reporter: derek fox is the face of an unemployment rate that has reached deep into charlotte s black middle class. since he was laid off, he has contacted more than a thousand companies looking for work. so far not even a nibble. i got out of school and didn t get the jobs i was looking for. then i went back, got an mba degree, you know, and i m almost like, wow, was this really worth it? reporter: charlotte was the promised land for well educated blacks or those who wants to climb the ladder by improving their education, but the financial crisis, recession and government budget cuts hit african-american workers particularly hard. vanessa parker got her bachelor s in business while working as an administrative assistant at ibm, but instead of moving up, ibm moved out. now she works a survival job for minimum wage. we want the american dream, to be able to take care of our homes and children. reporter: african-americans have historically had about double the national unemploym
bachelor s in business while working at ibm, but instead of moving up, ibm moved out. now she works a survival job for minimum wage. we want the american dream. we want to work, be able to take care of our homes and children. reporter: african-americans have historically had about double the national unemployment rate, but the numbers in if charlotte are particularly shocking says patrick graham, president of the local urban league. it is heartbreaking in the sense that you watch people who are viable, who have talent who can t necessarily find the job opportunity they need. reporter: and keep in mind, too, that charlotte is going to be the showcase city for the democratic national convention next year. to illustrate how teachly things have deeply things have cut in, the average net worth for african-american households is $5700, comparing to a white net worth on the average of
particularly hard. vanessa parker got her bachelor s in business while working at ibm, but instead of moving up, ibm moved out. now she works a survival job for minimum wage. we want the american dream. we want to work, be able to take care of our homes and children. reporter: african-americans have historically had about double the national unemployment rate, but the numbers in if charlotte are particularly shocking says patrick graham, president of the local urban league. it is heartbreaking in the sense that you watch people who are viable, who have talent who can t necessarily find the job opportunity they need. reporter: and keep in mind, too, that charlotte is going to be the showcase city for the democratic national convention next year. to illustrate how teachly things have deeply things have cut in, the average net worth for african-american households is $5700, comparing to a white net