Operation HOPE Founder, Chairman, and CEO John Hope Bryant recently joined Bloomberg for a powerful conversation on why financial literacy is the defining civil rights issue of our time.

In the interview, Chairman Bryant made it clear: the real dividing line in America today isn’t red or blue, or even Black and white—it’s green. And as the U.S. economy continues to rely heavily on consumer spending, everyday Americans are feeling the weight of financial decisions and public policy like never before. From tariffs and inflation to credit scores and business succession, the conversation touched on issues that hit kitchen tables across the country.

But more than just highlighting the challenges, Bryant offered a vision for what’s possible. Drawing on insights from his recent meeting with the U.S. Treasury Secretary and leveraging HOPE’s national footprint,, he called for a unified, bipartisan commitment to financial empowerment—one that centers economic dignity, expands access to capital, and repairs the financial ladder for those most often left behind.

At Operation HOPE, we believe that’s exactly what financial literacy represents: a pathway to stability, opportunity, and long-term wealth creation. It’s not a partisan issue—it’s an American one.