Maine’s Black entrepreneurs lag behind white counterparts in business earnings, ownership rates

Black Mainers are less likely to own a business than white residents, and those who do report earning substantially less money than white peers, according to publicly available data. 

While this is consistent with national trends, a lack of detailed, up-to-date statistics hampers deep, state-level analysis. Researchers and advocates say more information is needed to understand the situation in Maine — and take steps to reduce disparities. 

“The Census Bureau withholds a lot of the data for . . .