Coping Strategies for Black Women Facing Job Loss, DEI Rollbacks

Laura Onyeneho, Defender

Licensed therapist educator Dr. LaToya S. Gilmore offers ways Black women can deal with the financial and identity hits caused by job loss.

April 2025 marked another setback in a long line of economic challenges for Black women in the American workforce.

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Black women lost 38,000 jobs last month and their unemployment rate rose to 6.1%, a full percentage point increase from March.

The number of unemployed Black women jumped by more than 106,000, a staggering shift that contrasts sharply with the steady or declining unemployment rates seen among other groups, including white women and Black men.

While the numbers are alarming, the emotional and mental toll of this trend is equally significant, and often overlooked. For many Black women, the impact of job loss is not only financial but deeply personal, touching on issues of identity, self-worth and systemic erasure.

 This is especially true amid the widespread dismantling of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, programs that, in many workplaces, were the only spaces acknowledging the unique challenges Black women face.

Read more to learn additional Coping strategies during DEI rollbacks

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