New Jersey Citizen Action joins advocacy groups in screening Dan Rather-produced student debt crisis film

Newark— New Jersey Citizen Action, Latino Action Network and New Jersey Communities United today hosted a free screening of Fail State. which lays bare how for-profit colleges exploit millions of low-income and minority students, leaving them with worthless degrees and drowning in student debt. Fail State, executive-produced by award-winning journalist and broadcaster Dan Rather, traces the rise, fall and resurgence of the for-profit college industry, revealing its Wall Street backing and the lawmakers enabling widespread fraud and abuse in American higher education.  Approximately one million New Jersey student loan borrowers currently struggle with some $43 billion in student loan debt.

“We thank our partners, New Jersey Communities United and Latino Action Network, for co-hosting this screening of Fail State, which provides a clear and stark picture of the origins and gravity of our nation’s student debt crisis,” said Beverly Brown Ruggia, Financial Justice Organizer for New Jersey Citizen Action.  “As we educate the public about the crisis, we are enlisting their input and participation in finding the most effective policy solutions for the many New Jersey families struggling with student loan debt.”

New Jersey Citizen Action is a statewide advocacy and social service organization that fights for social, racial and economic justice for all while also meeting the pressing needs of low and moderate income New Jerseryans through education and direct service.