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Student debt activists buy off millions in loans, then cancel them

A collective requested permission to release the debt, which reportedly eliminated balances on at least 2,777 accounts.
Student debt activists buy off millions in loans, then cancel them
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A group of student loan activists against sometimes crippling bills for education made a lot of students happy recently when they bought off millions of dollars in student loan debt, then requested permission to cancel, or pay off the balances on accounts. 

The group known as the Debt Collective said it worked with another organization called Rolling Jubilee Fund to buy off almost $10 million in debt from Atlanta's Morehouse College, striking a deal to buy it off for $125,000. 

The group then requested final permission to have balances of at least 2,777 accounts eliminated, and effectively considered paid in full. 

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Braxton Brewington, a spokesperson for the Debt Collective said, “Our nation is defaulting on the promise of education." 

He said U.S. students face "crushing amounts of student debt."

Data shows students in the U.S., and former students owe around $1.77 trillion in student loans. 

In early October, the Biden administration tried for a second time during the president's administration to move a plan forward to cancel a significant amount of the debt for borrowers. 

Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal, said, "Student loan debt in this country has grown so large that it siphons off the benefits of college for many students."

After the debt from nearly 3,000 accounts connected to Atlanta's historically Black Morehouse University was transferred to the Jubilee Fund to be settled up, the financial burden eliminated came out to $9,707,827.67. 

Brewington said, "This nearly $10 million of student debt cancellation will put thousands of Black folks in a better position to be able to save for retirement, purchase a home or start a small business."

The Debt Collective offers resources and information on its website to help all people find a way to discover relief of some sort, and hope that they can eliminate burdensome financial issues. 


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