William Edward Spriggs, an economist, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 68. For over four decades, Dr. Spriggs worked for racial justice within his profession and society at large. His death was announced by the A.F.L.-C.I.O., for whom Dr. Spriggs functioned as chief economist for more than 10 years. The cause of his death was a stroke, stated his wife, Jennifer Spriggs. Dr. Spriggs was one of his generation’s most distinguished Black economists and earlier in his career worked in other public sector capacities, such as the position of assistant secretary of labor under the Obama administration. However, he was most famous for his work outside of government as an outspoken advocate for workers – particularly Black workers.
Aside from being a professor at Howard University, Dr. Spriggs was also a vocal critic of the economic field’s overwhelming dominance by white men. He pushed for change within what was a largely white field while mentoring a new generation of Black economists. Dr. Spriggs worked on various issues related to trade, education, minimum wage, and Social Security. However, he returned most often to the topic of racial disparities in labor markets, as he claimed Black Americans regularly experienced double the rate of unemployment as white individuals. Dr. Spriggs wrote in an opinion piece in The New York Times in 2021 that economists used skills to rationalize such disparity.
Dr. Spriggs championed the idea that economics is a discipline with a social purpose. He said that ideas created within the field must be employed to design better social policies. Following George Floyd’s death in 2020 and the resulting national reckoning with American racism, he wrote an open letter sharply criticizing economic research, among other things, for its flawed approach to race. He was involved in discussions this year over his appointment to senior policy positions in the Biden administration. Dr. Spriggs, however, remained outside and continued to push the administration to ensure a robust economic recovery. In his final months, Dr. Spriggs was a vocal critic of the Federal Reserve for its aggressive inflation management, which Dr. Spriggs warned would have a disproportionate impact on Black workers.
President Biden, in a statement on Wednesday, referred to Dr. Spriggs as a towering figure and trailblazer in economics.
William Edward Spriggs, born on April 8, 1955, to Thurman and Julienne (Henderson) Spriggs in Washington, began his career in Virginia after growing up there. Dr. Spriggs’ father, a physics professor at Norfolk State University in Virginia and at Howard, was a Tuskegee Airmen fighter pilot during World War II. His mother was a veteran who became a public-school teacher in Norfolk after earning a college degree while raising her son up. At Wisconsin University, where he completed his graduate and postgraduate studies, Dr. Spriggs was the only Black student in the economics department.
While attending Wisconsin University, Dr. Spriggs co-chaired the graduate student teachers’ union, which, after a largely unsuccessful strike, he helped rebuild. He taught at Norland State University after finishing his studies, and later at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro. Dr. Spriggs took on various positions in the government and left-leaning think tanks before returning to teaching in 2005 as chairman of the economics department at Howard University, a position he held from 2005 to 2009.
Jennifer Spriggs, Dr. Spriggs’ wife of 38 years, and their son William, and two sisters – Patricia Spriggs and Karen Baldwin – survive him. In economics, he was a mentor to several young economists.
Jim Tankersley contributed to this report.
