Congressional Black Caucus
"The Conscience of Congress since 1969"
www.congressionalblackcaucus.net

(Washington, D.C.) - U.S. Representative Melvin L. Watt (D-NC), Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), today released the following statement on behalf of the CBC on the November unemployment rate among African Americans:

“Jobless figures for African Americans totaled a staggering 10.6 percent in November, compared to 4.3 percent for white Americans.  This continues the dismal trend in which the African American unemployment rate has been more than double that of white Americans, according to an unemployment report released this morning by the U.S. Labor Department.

 “While the disappointing Labor figures for November show the unemployment rate for Blacks at 10.6 percent, I am confident that the actual rate is much higher because many African Americans have stopped looking for jobs or simply cannot find a job, like those displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

“The possibility of obtaining a job and developing economic security remains out of reach for too many African Americans and this negatively impacts every aspect of life.  Unemployment makes it impossible to have access to health care, widens the opportunity gap in education and makes it impossible for individuals to achieve their full potential.

“We call on the President, once again, to show his personal commitment to closing these disparities and call on him to rally the country behind the persistent and unfinished business of eliminating these disparities.  Only then can our country realize its full potential and honor its commitment to provide equal opportunity for all.”
 

(####)