Put Economic Justice First

On the heels of the year’s first Democratic Presidential debates, many scratch their heads at what, ultimately, will set the sprawling field of 20 candidates apart — not just in rhetoric, but in policy. The Democratic Party has long counted on the support of Black voters, but little resources have ever been devoted to polling what Black voters nationally actually want from their politicians. That was, at least, until the Black Census debuted this April. 

“More Black than Blue: Politics and Power in the 2019 Black Census” is a 22 page report conducted by Black Futures Lab, in collaboration with Demos, Color of Change, and SocioAnalitica Research. Its findings paint a clear picture of just how critical the opinions of Black Americans are to our very democracy: “No Democratic candidate will win the White House without an engaged national movement of Black voters. More than half of Black Census respondents saying politicians do not care about Black people and their interests is a major problem for the party and for the country,”said Alicia Garza, principal at the Black Futures Lab, andco-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement alongside Patrice Cullors and Opal Tometi. 

The Black Census Project is the “largest survey of Black people conducted in the United States since Reconstruction” — using a blended methodology of community conversation and online polling to touch base with 30,000 Black people across the country. Unlike other attempts, it’s worth noting that this survey is far from an attempt to categorize the Black experience as monolithic. Black conservatives and leftists, homeless community members and wealthy entrepreneurs, incarcerated people, LGBTQ people, Black immigrants, and mixed-raced people are a few of the many identities captured within this research. 

As a follow up during Pride Month, Black Future Labs also released “When the Rainbow is Not Enough: LGB+ Voices in the 2019 Black Census,” which zooms in on the responses of 5,400 Black people who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or another non-heterosexual orientation in the survey. “Unlike the dominant media image of LGB+ people that focuses on white gay men primarily concerned about the right to marry, the Black Census reveals the need for a broader racial justice agenda and an analysis that accounts for intersections of race, class, sexual orientation, gender and gender identity,“ the report states. 

The Black Futures Lab’s next Black Census report will explore the distinct concerns and experiences of Black Census respondents who identify as transgender, gender non-conforming, or identify their gender as “different” than male or female. Highlighting transgender and gender non-conforming individuals in their own report provides an opportunity to shine a spotlight on a community that is too often marginalized, even in discussions about LGBTQ+ people. 

Somewhat unsurprisingly, one issue area stood out as top priority for Black Americans across the spectrum: economic (in)justice. As summarized byJustin Maxson— executive director of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation —in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, “Financial systems are some of the primary mechanisms maintaining racial oppression… Big banks and traditional investment vehicles can exacerbate existing inequities; conversely, new financial partnerships, supportive economic policies, and place-based institutions can increase access to capital and return decision-making power to communities.” It’s worth noting that LGB+ Black Census respondents were more likely to havelower incomesthan Black Census respondents who identify as heterosexual, amplifying the pressure they felt from economic strain. Let’s dive into the major findings from the Black Census reports, and what issues Democrats should be taking to heart if truly concerned with meeting the needs of their Black constituents. 

Black Census respondents identified low wages as the most pressing economic challenge , with 85 percent supporting the idea of raising the minimum wage to at least $15. A full 90 percent explicitly named low wages as a problem, with 85 percent deeming it “a major problem.” This number increases when you look at respondents who identify as electorally engaged — in other words, participants who not only vote but take part in electoral activities like canvassing, donating, and volunteering. 97 percent of these voters plan on taking policies that impact wages into high consideration as they walk into their polling stations.

This expression of economic insecurity is increasingly reflected by evidence of pay discrimination, where “Black workers are paid 16.2 percent less than White workers even after gender, education, age, and geography are taken into account, and wage gaps for Black women are even greater.” Tragically, 90 percent view wages as too low to sustain families, which then affects almost every aspect of life (including the remaining themes below). 

Two-thirds of new jobsrequire credentials beyond the high school diploma. As the younger generation faces rising college costs, 85 percent of Black Census respondents identify it as a problem in their community, and 84 percent favor making college truly affordable for everyone. Black students on average need to borrow more money to attend college than non-Black students. While not explicitly discussed in the report, many studies point to the fact thatcollege debtoften impacts Black families more than it does White families; returning to the reality of wage gaps between Black and White college-educated employees. The cyclical nature of financial stress isfar from being disrupted, even at the most well-resourced institutions of higher education. 

A full 90 percent of Black Census respondents felt that it is the government’s job to provide adequate healthcare for all, but are unsatisfied with the current reality. Even after significant increases in the coverage under the Affordable Care Act, Black people are less likely than White people to have health insurance. This was particularly salient for older Black respondents, who face increasing medical bills. Nearly 1 in 3 (32 percent) have put off seeing a doctor for financial reasons in the last 12 months. Also at the intersection of health and economics: 31 percent of respondents noted personally cutting back on food in their households in order to save money this year. 

The same percentage of participants who identified lack of affordable healthcare as a major problem also identified lack of affordable housing as devastating to their communities, stating that it is the government’s responsibility to provide adequate housing to all citizens. Notably, nearly half report living in a household that “lacked enough funds to pay a monthly bill in the last 12 months.” 

With all of this data pointing to a need to close the economic gap between Black and White Americans, what policies must candidates prioritize? And beyond basic decency, why should voters of all backgrounds be aligned in this mission? According torigorous study and economic modeling, the benefit of closing the racial equity gap to the United States at large is valued at $1 trillion in earnings, with a corresponding gain of $8 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP) by the year 2050. In simpler terms: when Black people are more financially secure, we’re all better off.

The starting point to address this multifaceted web of issues is revealed to be more straight-foward than one might assume, according to the report. The majority of respondents favor increasing taxes on the rich as a means of raising revenue to address these policy priorities in all of these areas. As the report makes clear, “More than three-quarters support increasing taxes on individuals earning $250,000 or more, and nearly 60 percent oppose reducing corporate taxes.” This will be a point of particular interest in the upcoming election, as the vast majority of Black voters strongly believe that politicians (regardless of political party)favor the richover all other constituents.

The complex challenges encountered by the Black community are undoubtedly compounded when elected officials choose to not address said challenges head on, for fear of engaging inidentity politics. Despite longstanding barriers to the polls andactive voter suppression, this important constituency has still served as an unwavering base of the Democratic Party. The data makes clear that if the politically engaged Black population “ceased to vote and gave up on the system, it would upend the Democratic Party and have devastating effects on our democracy as a whole.”

As stated in the report’s conclusion, “If political leaders are ready to listen to the issues and concerns of Black Census respondents, the community is ready to mobilize.” The Black Census data is about more than devising election strategy for 2020 — it’s a step toward more sustained local and national attention to the needs and desires of Black communities throughout America.

Source: Forbes.com

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