Rep. Pramila Jayapal: Student debt cancellation is 'racial justice,' 'gender justice,' 'economic justice'
Jayapal said canceling student debt would help 'close the racial wealth gap'
Student loan borrowers react to Biden’s payment pause extension
FOX Business’ Lydia Hu speaks to student loan borrowers frustrated by Biden’s extension of the moratorium on federal student loan payments.
Progressive Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal claimed on Twitter that student debt cancellation is a form of racial, gender, and economic justice.
"Student debt cancellation is racial justice, Student debt cancellation is gender justice, Student debt cancellation is economic justice," the Washington state Democrat tweeted on Saturday.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal speaks to reporters as she walks out of a House Democratic Progressive Caucus meeting on Capitol Hill, Oct. 28, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik / AP Newsroom)
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Jayapal has been a vocal proponent for canceling all student debt and posted earlier this week that doing so would help "close the racial wealth gap."
Jayapal also posted a link to a poll that found a majority of Americans support canceling student loan debt.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) (AP Newsroom)
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The Biden administration is expected to freeze federal student loan payments through Aug. 31, extending a moratorium that has allowed millions of Americans to postpone payments during the coronavirus pandemic, according to an administration official familiar with the White House’s decision-making.
Student loan payments were scheduled to resume May 1 after being halted since early in the pandemic. But following calls from Democrats in Congress, the White House plans to give borrowers additional time to prepare for payments.
Democrats on education panels in the House and Senate recently urged President Biden to extend the moratorium through the end of the year, citing continued economic upheaval.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal speaks during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee on Dec. 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik / AP Newsroom)
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White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said during a press briefing earlier this month that the Biden administration has "not ruled out" canceling student loan debt on a "wide scale" via executive action.
More than 43 million Americans owe a combined $1.6 trillion in student debt held by the federal government, according to the latest data from the Education Department. That includes more than 7 million borrowers who have defaulted on student loans, meaning they are at least 270 days late on payments.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.