[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 101 (Tuesday, June 23, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E951-E952]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         THE MISSING BLACK MALE

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. BARBARA LEE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 23, 2015

  Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, as the mother of two black men and grandmother 
of two black boys, we're here to talk about a crisis in our 
communities: the crisis of missing black men.
  In order for us to understand where these men have gone, we must 
understand the root of the problem. Simply put, too many places in our 
nation are a tale of two cities. One city is bright, shiny and new--
it's home to new condominiums and fancy restaurants. The other city is 
littered with boarded up stores, abandoned homes, and too many people 
without a job and without hope.
  This disparity did not happen overnight. We've lived with these 
structural injustices for centuries. But it wasn't until race riots 
erupted in Watts, Chicago, and Detroit in 1968 that our government 
began to take notice.
  After the riots, President Johnson convened the Kerner Commission to 
investigate the root causes of the unrest. The Commission found a 
nation ``moving towards two societies, one black, one white, separate 
and unequal.'' Tragically, this report could have been written last 
week. In the last 50 years, these structural injustices have barely 
budged. And black men are still being pushed out of American society.
  According to a New York Times report published in April, there is an 
estimated 1.5 million black men aged 24-54 who are simply missing from 
civic life. Let me repeat--one in six black men have disappeared from 
civic life. 1.5 million black men missing--that can be hard to 
visualize.
  So think about it this way:
  There are more African-American men missing nationwide than there are 
African-American men residing in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, 
Houston, Washington D.C. and Boston, combined. Let me say that again: 
There are more African American men missing from our society than black 
men living in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, Houston, Washington 
D.C. and Boston--COMBINED.
  Many have been lost to our jails and prisons, which 
disproportionately incarcerate black men. And others have lost their 
lives far too young. Some are the victims of homicide; others, the 
victims of a healthcare system that fails to care for them. This is 
tragic--but it's hardly surprising. The inequity of opportunity for 
black men starts at birth.
  More than one in three black children are born into poverty. The 
cycle of poverty continues in school systems that institutionalize 
discrimination and racial bias. While black students represent just 18 
percent of preschool enrollment, they account for 42 percent of 
preschool student expulsions.
  We are talking about kids that are 2-5 years old--these kids don't 
even get a start, let alone a head start. And this crisis of inequality 
extends from education to the economy itself. Over the past four 
decades, the average unemployment rate for blacks has been DOUBLE the 
rate for white Americans.
  And the current unemployment rate for black men over 20 stands at 
10.2 percent--that's higher than the national average at the height of 
the recent recession. For many black men, it feels like there is a 
permanent recession. In the world's richest and most powerful nation, 
it is simply inexcusable for the inequities to persist.
  Mr. Speaker--this must be our call to action.
  We must come together like never before to address the systemic 
inequalities that are endemic in our nation--inequalities that leave 
black men behind.
  We know that one in six African American men are missing because they 
are incarcerated or the victims of premature deaths. To start undoing 
this crisis, we need a coordinated approach including legislation, 
local programs and broad national initiatives.
  We must re-double our support of the President's My Brother's Keeper 
initiative. I encourage everyone, especially my Congressional 
colleagues, to encourage your local leaders to engage in this 
initiative, which builds ladders of opportunity and unlocks the full 
potential of boys and young men of color through a collaborative 
public-private partnership.
  We must also look for innovation solutions that are currently working 
in our communities and bring them to the national stage. I am proud 
that Oakland Unified School District, in my congressional district, is 
the first school district to have a dedicated department to address the 
needs of African American male students. And we need more like it 
across the country.
  These national and local initiatives are working but Congress also 
has a role. It's past time for us to get serious about addressing the 
lack of opportunity for black men and boys in this country.
  Right now--today--in this chamber, there is legislation that can and 
will start moving the needle.
  Legislation that will create real, good-paying jobs--legislation that 
will give everyone a fair chance at a job--legislation that will ensure 
a college degree is within reach for everyone, regardless of where they 
were born or what race they are. Legislation that will bring health 
equity and reform our broken criminal justice system.
  In my role as co-chair of the CBC Task Force on Poverty and the 
Economy and Chair of the Democratic Whip's Task Force on Poverty, 
Income Inequality, and Opportunity, I am proud to be working with more 
than 100 of my colleagues, to advance policies that give black men--and 
really all Americans--a fair shot
  This work includes the Half in Ten Act (H.R. 258)--which would 
develop a national strategy to cut poverty in half the next decade. 
That's more than 22 million Americans lifted out of poverty and into 
the middle class in just the next 10 years by being strategic and 
coordinating our existing programs.
  We also need to raise the minimum wage--and fight for a living wage 
because too many Americans are working full time and still struggling 
to make ends meet.
  I am proud to cosponsor Congressman Al Green's The Original Living 
Wage Act (H.R. 122) and Congressman Scott's Raise the Wage Act (H.R. 
2150), legislation that would increase the minimum wage for federal 
workers and the national minimum wage to $12 by 2020, respectively. We 
also need to fight against the disparities that persist in our health 
care system. The Affordable Care Act was a good start but more is 
needed.
  For years, the Congressional tri-caucus has championed this effort by 
introducing The Health Equity and Accountability Act (HEAA). 
Congresswoman Robin Kelly will have the honor in introducing this 
important legislation this Congress and I am proud to co-lead this 
effort as co-chair of the CAPAC Health Task Force.
  This important legislation builds on the Affordable Care Act and puts 
us on track to eliminate health disparities in our country.
  Lastly, we need to empower communities to build greater trust between 
law enforcement and communities of color. And we need to address 
chronic recidivism, which would be a huge step towards returning some 
of our ``missing'' men home to their families and communities.
  That is why Congress should pass the bipartisan Stop Militarizing Law 
Enforcement Act (H.R. 1232), which I am a proud cosponsor of, to stop 
the militarization of our nation's police forces.
  We need to pass the Police Accountability Act (H.R. 1102) and the 
Grand Jury Reform Act (H.R. 429) so we can ensure that deadly force 
cases are heard by a judge and there is more accountability among 
police officers.
  I was also proud to lead a letter, signed by 72 of my colleagues, 
urging the President to adopt a fair chance hiring policy at the 
federal level for individuals who have been previously incarcerated. A 
fair chance hiring policy would level the playing field and help stop 
the cycle of recidivism that's plaguing our communities.
  This is simply the right thing to do: the federal government 
shouldn't put up barriers to work for those trying to rebuild their 
lives after making a mistake. It is vital that Congress acts to ensure 
the tragedies in Ferguson, Staten Island, Oakland--in my district--and 
now Baltimore are not repeated.
  Mr. Speaker, we can end the phenomenon of the missing black male. We 
must keep calling for action.
  As Dr. King said in his ``Two Americas'' speech that he gave on April 
14th, 1968 at Stanford University: `We must come to see that social 
progress never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability. It comes 
through the tireless efforts and the persistent work of dedicated 
individuals.'
  We must each be those dedicated individuals working for the social 
progress that is so desperately needed.
  I urge my colleagues: act and act now--too much is at stake.

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