Unconditional Cash Study
• 07.18.2024
Participant Stories
Stories: Location at Enrollment: Texas
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View StoryDebbie
Debbie, living in Fort Worth, Texas, had been married to her ex-husband since she was 19 years-old. He controlled both of their finances and over the years, became increasingly abusive. After he struck one of their children, she decided to live independently with her children. It was a big change, but with the unconditional cash, she was able to cover bills and set up her LLC. …Demarcus
Demarcus describes himself as a “simple guy from down South”. Like many, Covid lockdowns filled him with a new uncertainty, but the unconditional cash gave him a sense of stability and confidence that he would get through it. Beyond the stability the unconditional cash brought him, it gave him a new sense of financial understanding and ambition. …Dominic
Like many young people, Dominic wanted to save money for retirement. But, when the pandemic hit and he lost his service industry job, he started to think differently about his relationship to work and money. He started working gig jobs, which gave him the flexibility to design his own life. With the unconditional cash, Dominic was also able to get top surgery as part of his transition. For Dominic, the unconditional cash afforded him the opportunity to explore what really mattered to him outside constant productivity. …Jackie
At the beginning of the program, Jackie dedicated a lot of her time to taking care of her ailing husband, a relationship which she describes as abusive. Throughout the program, she experienced health challenges of her own, navigating her experience of trauma and depression.During the unconditional cash study, she used some of the money to leave for a halfway house. By the end of the program, she returned to supporting her husband as a full-time caretaker."I did use some of that money to make my way through the halfway house. I lived in another state for a year and I should have stayed. I should have stayed where my family and my kids were, but I didn't. I ended up coming back and falling back into his trap and it just started the whole cycle over again.” …Zoe
When the program started, Zoe was at a pivotal moment in her life. After a domestic dispute with her husband, her kids were taken into Child Protective Services (CPS). She was struggling with addiction and living with her grandparents in a neighborhood that exacerbated the problem. Then, Zoe used the money to move into a women’s sober house, and while there, was able to get her children back. Now, Zoe has a much better relationship with her husband and children. She is living with her family in a new state, in a place she describes as safe and spacious and closer to family support and good schools for her children. …Audio Anthology Executive Producer
Rebecca Sananès
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