Estate Planning Is for All of Us

BY IFEOMA “IFFY” IBEKWE

When is the last time you thought about estate planning? How about creating a will?

If you are from a marginalized community, the answer might be never. Instead, you may be experiencing guilt and shame that you don’t have a will. You may be alarmed by the cost of hiring a lawyer to prepare all the required documents. You may even be wondering whether estate planning is for someone like you. I hear you.

Estate planning can be overwhelming. Talking about death, planning for incapacitation, navigating taxes, and protecting your child is not as sexy as mastering the latest Cardi B. TikTok dance or learning how to become a millionaire in six weeks. Don’t let this stop you. Estate planning allows you to leave behind an impactful legacy and transfer wealth to make it easier on the people and causes that come after you.

I used to feel so much shame that I (a lawyer!) hadn’t established an estate plan to protect myself and my loved ones. Shame and embarrassment are common feelings that many women express when questioned about estate planning. However, these emotions do nothing but leave us stuck. We must change the narrative from one of shame to empowerment if we expect to move the needle and protect wealth in marginalized communities.

Women of color are excluded disproportionately from setting up and transferring wealth intergenerationally. This exclusion is due to systemic racism, lack of access, lack of knowledge about protecting ourselves and our loved ones, and other barriers. Particularly, those of us belonging to Black and Latinx communities are left further behind in wealth accumulation. This is not OK. Let’s look at the data:

• In 2017, AARP reported that 78% of millennials and 64% of Gen Xers do not have a will.

• According to a report by The Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College, American estates will transfer around $59 trillion from approximately 94 million estates between 2007 and 2061. Of the $59 trillion, beneficiaries will receive $36 trillion between 2007 and 2061, while $5.6 trillion will go to federal estate taxes.

• According to a 2017 report by the Institute for Policy Studies and Prosperity Now, Black people are on track to have a medium income of zero by 2053. Latinx people are on track to have a medium income of zero by 2073.

• These statistics are enlightening, alarming, and sometimes discouraging. Bridging the wealth gap for women and people of color will not be accomplished by estate planning alone, but it is a critical factor in closing the gap.

Want to know how I know?

I am a successful, Black woman estate-planning attorney who has helped hundreds of women and families establish wills, trusts, and other legal documents. I help activate women to take agency over their lives and build impactful legacies.

It took my beloved father’s passing to open my eyes and understand how invaluable estate planning is—especially for women. My father died in 2004, and because he didn’t have a will in place, I watched my mom experience the grief of his loss while tying up the loose ends of his life in probate court—at a considerable cost. The first thing she did after that difficult process was to create an estate plan so my brothers and I wouldn’t have to endure the same stress in the event of her passing. She wanted to make sure that her healthcare agency was intact and to secure her intergenerational wealth transfer to her children. My mom was the catalyst for change in the trajectory of our family. I will never forget that. I followed my mom’s lead by setting up my estate plan after my first child was born. It was one of the most empowering decisions I’ve ever made as a woman.

Let me be honest with you: Establishing an estate plan allowed me to preserve my agency and communicate my wishes to key family members and friends. Estate planning gave me immeasurable peace now that my affairs are in order—especially in a climate with so much political, moral, and ideological turmoil.

Women of color are excluded disproportionately from setting up and transferring wealth intergenerationally. This is not OK.

I have seen the distress caused when women do not have their legal affairs in order. I’ve also seen many women and families of color struggle because they hadn’t prepared for an unforeseen health crisis or death. Because of this, I am often asked to contribute to a crowdfunding campaign for a funeral. Every time I receive a request to donate and help alleviate some of the financial burdens a funeral can place on a family, I see a missed opportunity.

For example, I have seen that pooling resources are a longstanding (and often necessary) activity for many Black people, and I never want to take away from our communal nature. Communitymindedness is one of the most beautiful aspects of the African diaspora. Many Black people continue the crowdfunding practice and sometimes take out predatory loans to bury their loved ones. Such practices have far-reaching historical significance because funeral homes and cemeteries across America were segregated. Most continue to be. When my dad passed away in Shreveport, Louisiana, many funeral attendees were shocked that he was buried in the “white section” of the cemetery. Even in death, Americans remain segregated.

Historically, marginalized groups haven’t had access to insurance and other means for planning and building wealth. White insurance providers would only sell limited insurance to Black, Brown, and Asian communities (usually, death benefits or funeral coverage). They would only offer the full suite of insurance to their white customers. This is no longer the case, but the effects of these discriminatory practices linger because marginalized communities do not utilize insurance as much as white communities do. Listen, white people do not work harder to get ahead. That is just not the case. Now that marginalized communities have more access to wealth preservation tools, we must leverage opportunities to build wealth with insurance—for everyone.

Now that marginalized communities have more access to wealth preservation tools, we must leverage opportunities to build wealth with insurance—for everyone.

While the fight for women’s equality is far from over, we are at a beautiful stage in our history. The United States has elected the first woman vice president, Kamala Harris, into office. We are also at a moment where women’s roles are changing in finances and life decisions. According to a Concentus Wealth Advisors report:

• Women are almost four times as likely to be widowed.

• Women are living longer than ever before, extending widowhood.

• More women than ever before are divorced or choose not to marry.

• Many women are inheriting twice, from parents and then from a spouse.

• More women own businesses or are entering professions with higher salaries, such as doctors, lawyers, or business executives.

However, most of these statistics are attributable to white women. Women of color are absent from conversations involving wealth transfer, financial independence, and estate planning.

This article is a call to action for all women. If you are ready to take charge of your life and protect yourself and your assets, I am talking to you. Together, we will start where you are by getting your affairs in order. Contact an estate planning attorney to begin. AL

Iffy Ibekwe is the principal attorney of Ibekwe Law, PLLC and has practiced law for over 15 years. She’s a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin (undergraduate and law school). Ibekwe is the current board president for Be the Bridge, an international nonprofit that empowers people toward racial healing, equity, and inclusion. The married mom of four children is also a weekly contributor to Above the Law, the largest online legal community in the world.