Springboard to Opportunities is proud to help lift up a powerful new report we did in collaboration with The Highland Project and brilliant corners Research & Strategies that captures what Black women voters in Mississippi are saying about the world they are navigating and the future they want to build. The findings are clear: Black women are deeply dissatisfied with the direction of the country, but they are not disengaged.
What stood out most in the research is the depth of vision Black women are bringing to this moment. They are naming the barriers they face — from low-wage work and rigged systems to racism, inadequate assistance and politicians who do not listen to their needs — while also insisting that a meaningful life must be about more than survival. Their answers point to joy, peace, faith, family and freedom as essential to real well-being; and they make a strong case that policy should meet people with dignity, not just urgency.
That insight matters now more than ever. As families continue to face pressure from cuts to essential supports and rising costs, this report reminds us that Black women are not asking for abstract promises. They are asking for the conditions that make a full life possible: good jobs, fair wages, affordable care, efficient support systems and leaders who actually listen.
It is up to policymakers to pay attention, because when Black women’s voices are centered, the path forward becomes clearer for all of us. ” – Aisha Nyandoro
We launched a new creator-led effort to help more people understand Summer EBT and related feeding programs in Mississippi. You can find them on our Instagram here!
Black women in Mississippi are clear — they need more than survival. They need systems that create dignity, stability and joy.
New polling from the Highland Project and brilliant corners research shows that 90% of respondents say economic conditions are getting worse, more than half say their income is not keeping up with the cost of living and 76% say lawmakers rarely listen to people like them when designing programs.
These findings reinforce what Springboard has always known: when families have breathing room, they can build lives rooted in care, rest and possibility. Now it’s time for policymakers to take note and craft programs to create this reality beyond one community in one state, so that everyone has the opportunity to create a joyful life.
“Black women voters in Mississippi areoffering one of the clearest pictures ofwhere America is failing — and what itwould take to build something rooted in joyand dignity.“
This poll tells two stories at once: Black women in Mississippi have a vision of wholeness for the future, and they have a precise understanding of what is breaking that possibility now.
This poll is part of The Highland Project’s multi-year research effort with brilliant corners Research and Strategies to listen to Black women’s economic, civic, and well-being perspectives and translate that wisdom into a broader vision of multigenerational wealth and opportunity. Across years of national polling, Black women have consistently named that wealth is not only what people earn or own. It is whether families and communities have the conditions to live fully — with financial freedom, abundant choice, belonging, and thriving health. The Mississippi findings deepen that lesson. Black women in Mississippi are naming what wholeness requires and what is breaking it: economic strain, public systems that too often fail to meet people with dignity, and a civic landscape where participation should not be mistaken for satisfaction. Their responses remind us that civic life, economic life, family life, and wellbeing are deeply connected — and that systems cannot earn trust by treating them as separate.
Black Women in Mississippi Are Asking for Breathing Room
Black women across Mississippi are carrying extraordinary responsibilities while navigating systems that often leave them exhausted, stressed, and unseen. This statewide survey reveals a simple but urgent truth: families are not asking for excess. They are asking for stability, dignity, and the ability to experience joy. The findings show that joy is not separate from economic policy or financial well-being. For many Black women, joy is deeply connected to peace of mind, time for themselves, rest, and the ability to care for loved ones without constant financial strain. The research also challenges harmful narratives about poverty and assistance programs. Black women overwhelmingly describe financial hardship not as personal failure, but as the result of rising costs, inadequate wages, and systems that often make getting help feel humiliating and exhausting.
“Springboard to Opportunities is stepping into a literal and figurative new season with the launch of the newest Magnolia Mother’s Trust cohort, marking an exciting new phase for what is the longest-running guaranteed income program in the United States. This year’s cohort brings together our tried and true model of distributing monthly cash support to Black mothers, along with a new addition to the work that I am so excited about: for the first time, we will have former members of the program offer peer-led, paid support that is designed to strengthen connection, community and shared leadership.
As families face continued pressure from cuts to essential services like SNAP and Medicaid, the Magnolia Mother’s Trust remains rooted in trust, dignity and a future where everyone thrives. The program continues to show that direct cash, paired with community support, can help families move forward with confidence and hope — while also offering a powerful example of what it looks like to invest in people directly and without judgment or conditions. We’re proud to launch this next chapter in a program that is not only changing lives, but also helping shape what real support can look like for families nationwide”
• Listen here to some of the calls we made to the new MMT moms
This month’s spotlight belongs to the children of Magnolia Mother’s Trust moms, whose stories from Night of Storytelling were featured in a special Mother’s Day Front & Center series in Ms. Magazine. The series offered a moving look at how children understand their mothers’ strength, sacrifice, and love, while also showing the deep impact of guaranteed income on family life.
It was a beautiful reminder that when moms are supported, children feel that support too. The series arrived alongside the launch of the newest Magnolia Mother’s Trust cohort, underscoring how this work continues to grow across generations.
Springboard to Opportunities celebrates the launch of the 7th cohort of the Magnolia Mother’s Trust (MMT) today. As the longest-running guaranteed income program in the United States, MMT continues to serve as a national model for economic justice, with this newest cohort of approximately 100 Black mothers receiving their first payments of $1,000 monthly for a year on May 15th. This year’s launch marks a pivotal evolution for the program. Beyond direct cash support, this cohort introduces a transformative peer-support initiative where program alumni serve as paid facilitators, fostering connection, mutual support and robust social capital among recipients. At a time when many families face critical cuts to essential services like SNAP and Medicaid, MMT offers a proven, consistent economic support that centers trust. An alumni study of former recipients found profound intangible benefits unmatched in other economic policies, including 78 percent of mothers feeling more confident in achieving their goals and 80 percent more hopeful about their children’s futures.
“We’ve always said that Magnolia Mother’s Trust is about more than direct cash — it’s about changing the narrative around who deserves to thrive and what real support looks like.This next phase is about taking what we’ve learned and sharpening it into a model that policymakers can’t ignore. This is how we turn proof of concept into policy” – CEO, Aisha Nyandoro
