A New Direction for African Americans & Their Families
House Democrats are working to honor the significant and long-lasting contributions that African Americans have made to the nation's economic, cultural, spiritual, and political fabric. From Frederick Douglass to Fannie Lou Hammer to the men and women of the Congressional Black Caucus, African Americans represent every aspect of this great nation's heritage and hope.
Because of the vision of countless civil rights trailblazers, African Americans have overcome astonishing hardships and inequalities. Today, more African American families have joined the middle class, more African American young people are pursuing higher education and the number of black businesses is increasing. But, there is still much more work to be done to expand opportunity and equality to all Americans. House Democrats are committed to fighting for civil, social, and economic justice to bring a New Direction for African Americans.
Click here for back issues of the Pelosi Progress Report, Speaker Pelosi's Newsletter for the African American community>>
LATEST NEWS
Marcia Fudge Swearing-in
November 19, 2008 - Marcia Fudge was sworn in by Speaker Pelosi on the House floor. Congresswoman Fudge fills the 11th district seat of Ohio vacated by the passing of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones.
Pelosi On Appointment of Bobby Scott to Serve on Ethics Committee
September 11, 2008 – Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that Congressman Bobby Scott of Virginia has been appointed to serve on the House Ethics Committee. A vacancy was created on the committee with the passing of Chairwoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones. With Scott’s appointment, the Committee is now fully operational.
“As a highly respected House Member, Bobby Scott brings a wealth of legal knowledge and experience to his new duties on the Ethics Committee. I am confident that his passion for justice and due process will guide his work on the committee.”
Pelosi Delivers Remarks at U.S. Capitol Memorial Service to Honor Chairwoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones
September 10, 2008 – Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivered the following remarks at a memorial service in the Capitol today honoring the late Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones.
“My, my, my, wouldn’t Stephanie have liked to see this turnout for her birthday party?
“When we were in Ohio, I was pleased to take two planeloads of Members of Congress to Cleveland for her memorial service. In that auditorium was a former President of the United States, a former First Lady who is a Senator and was a candidate for President, a nominee of the Democratic Party for President of the United States, her colleagues, her friends, and her family – all gathered together to celebrate the life and leadership of Stephanie Tubbs Jones.
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The Third Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
August 29, 2008 – Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s devastation upon striking the Gulf Coast:
“Three years ago today, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, becoming the worst natural disaster in America’s history. Tragically, this terrible natural disaster turned catastrophic for millions of Gulf Coast residents when it was met with the failures and cronyism of the Bush Administration and the Republican-led Congress. The Republican leadership failed to respond adequately to enact much of the critically-needed relief for those whose lives had been up-ended by the storm.
45th Anniversary of the March on Washington
August 28, 2008 – Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement on the 45th anniversary of the March on Washington, led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on August 28, 1963:
"On the 45th anniversary of the March on Washington, we honor the unwavering determination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the more than 250,000 Americans who came to their nation’s capital to call for an end to discriminatory laws and practices. We pay tribute to their bravery, their commitment, and their wisdom.
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Pelosi Statement on Passing of Chairwoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones
August 20, 2008 — Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today on the passing of House Ethics Committee Chairwoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones of Ohio:
"On behalf of all Members of Congress, I express my deepest condolences on the sudden death of our friend and colleague, Chairwoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, to all who loved her, particularly her son, Mervyn Leroy Jones, II, and her sister, Barbara Walker.
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60th Anniversary of Integration of U.S. Armed Forces
On July 23, Speaker Pelosi joined with House and Senate leaders in the Capitol Rotunda to commemorate President Truman’s executive order 60 years ago that marked the beginning of racial integration in the armed services. Speaker Pelosi said, “When called on their country to serve, African Americans did so with courage, honor and distinction—just as many do today. When called by conscience to serve the civil rights movement, they provided indispensable moral leadership, defended liberty, and redefined America for the better."
Read Speaker Pelosi's full speech>>
See photographs from the ceremony>>
Congressional Delegation Trip To The Gulf Coast
In 2006, when the Gulf Coast was still reeling from the federal government’s incompetence and congressional inaction, House Democrats dispatched a delegation to the Gulf Coast to assess the devastation from Katrina and Rita. That trip was a first step in an unwavering partnership House Democrats have established with the Gulf Coast, informing the legislation that eventually became law under Democratic leadership in the 110th Congress. During the end of July, House Majority Whip Clyburn led Speaker Pelosi, Leader Hoyer, Vice-Chair Larson and other House Democrats on their third Congressional Delegation to the Gulf Coast. On their four-day trip, the delegation visited several sites in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and coastal Mississippi to determine where the region stands on the issues of health care, housing, education, infrastructure, criminal justice and insurance reform.
Learn more about Gulf Coast recovery legislation signed into law>>
Pelosi: New Direction Congress Rising to the Challenge of Gulf Coast Recovery>>
MEASURES ENACTED INTO LAW
MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE – The first increase in more than a decade became a reality for millions of Americans in July, thanks to action by the New Direction Congress:
- The increase in the minimum wage will benefit more than two million hardworking African Americans over the next several years. [EPI, 4/07]
- This pay raise comes at a critical time for African American families as household income has dropped by $2,766 since 2000, and, over the last six years, the number of African Americans living below the poverty level has grown by 1.1 million. [CPS, 8/07]
- Minority women will benefit the most from the wage increase: fully 33 percent of women benefiting are African-American or Hispanic, even though these groups comprise less than a quarter of the female workforce. [Center for American Progress, 9/04]
MAKING COLLEGE MORE AFFORDABLE – Benefiting the more than 2.2 million African American students enrolled in degree-granting institutions and those who strive to follow in their footsteps:
- The New Direction Congress has enacted the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (H.R. 2669), signed into law by the President on September 27. This is the single largest investment in college assistance since the G.I. Bill of 1944, making college more accessible and affordable.
- The College Cost Reduction and Access Act increases the Pell Grant by more than $1,000 over the next five years, restoring the purchasing power for millions of low and moderate income students. This will help the 47 percent of African American students who receive the Pell Grant scholarship each year.
- The legislation also cuts the interest rates on subsidized student loans in half. This cut would save the typical borrower $4,400 over the life of the loan. About 38 percent of African American students take out need-based student loans each year.
- The new law also makes landmark new investments in Historically Black Colleges and Universities with a priority for increasing the number of students graduating with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and improving the transfer rate from 2-year to 4-year institutions.
- In addition, the new law also provides new grants for Predominantly Black Institutions -- schools that enroll students in financial need and have at least 40 percent African-American student enrollment -- for programs in science, technology, engineering, health education, teacher education, and programs geared towards improving the educational outcomes of African-American males.
INNOVATION AGENDA THAT SPURS INNOVATION AND GOOD-PAYING JOBS – Congress has enacted our crucial Innovation Agenda, which makes new investments in math and science education and basic research in order to restore our ability to compete in a global economy.
- America COMPETES Act, (H.R. 2272), was signed into law by the President on August 9, puts us on a path to doubling funding for National Science Foundation basic research over the next 10 years, invests in some 25,000 new math and science teachers over the next five years, and works to strengthen small high-tech firms and stimulate investments in innovative technologies by small manufacturers.
- The bill also takes concrete steps toward increasing the number of women and under-represented minorities entering the science, technology, engineering and math fields.
- For example, the new law will improve the NSF’s program to increase undergraduates in science, technology, engineering and math in order to promote minority and women participation, and requires a National Academy of Sciences study on strategies to increase minority participation in the science, technology, engineering and math workforce.
- In 2000, only 4 percent of the science and engineering jobs in the U.S. were held by African Americans.
- Nearly 40 percent of Americans under the age of 18 is a racial or ethnic minority -- so increasing the participation of young African Americans and Hispanics in math, science and engineering education is essential to supplying the American economy with the expertise in science, math, engineering and technology that the country will need to innovate and remain competitive in the future.
OVERDUE FUNDING TO HELP REBUILD GULF COAST COMMUNITIES RAVAGED BY HURRICANES KATRINA AND RITA.
- The FY 2007 Supplemental (H.R. 2206) bill, enacted into law on May 25th, provides $6.4 billion for Gulf Coast Recovery; the Democratic-led Congress added $3 billion to meet specific urgent needs of the Gulf Coast. The law: waives the local matching requirement under the Stafford Act for FEMA disaster recovery projects, includes $1.35 billion in Community Disaster loan forgiveness, extends Low Income Housing Tax Credits allocated under the Gulf Opportunity Zone Act of 2005, expands access to low-income financing for homeowners in hurricane-affected areas, and extends access to emergency federal funding and allocates $60 million to pay teachers and operate schools.
- On April 10th, the President signed into law H.R. 1132, the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program Reauthorization Act of 2007, reauthorizing the program for five more years.
- This program provides free and low-cost breast and cervical cancer screenings to low-income, minority, or uninsured women and provides education and outreach services to women.
MEASURES PASSED BY THE HOUSE
A BILL THAT RENEWS AND IMPROVES THE STATE CHILDREN’S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM (SCHIP) – Providing health care coverage for 10 million low-income children:
- More than half of all insured African American children are covered by Medicaid or SCHIP programs. [Families USA, 6/07]
- More than 14 percent of African American children are still living day-to-day without any health coverage. Experts say that more than 8 in 10 uninsured African American children are eligible for coverage through Medicaid or SCHIP, but are not enrolled. [CPS, 8/07; Covering Kids & Families, 2006]
- Congress has passed H.R. 976, State Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007, which renews and improves the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) – preserving coverage for 6 million children currently covered by SCHIP and extending coverage to 4 million uninsured children. Unfortunately, the President has vetoed this bill. On October 25th, the House passed H.R. 3963, a revised version of the Children's Health Program reauthorization.
- This Children's Health Program bill also takes steps to reduce health disparities in communities of color and makes critical changes to overcome the barriers to enrollment in Medicaid and SCHIP, such as expanding outreach and encouraging culturally appropriate enrollment practices.
- In addition, on May 25th, H.R. 2206 was enacted into law providing emergency funding for the SCHIP program – preventing potentially hundreds of thousands of children in 11 states from losing their health insurance or having their health coverage scaled back in the next few months.
IMPROVED EARLY CHILDHOOD AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN – Early childhood education programs, such as Early Start and Head Start, provide a crucial foundation for hundreds of thousands of lower-income children before they enter the school system. Furthermore, more than 8 million public school students in America are African American.
- Head Start provides vital child development, health and nutrition services to nearly 280,000 African American children. [Administration for Children & Families, Office of Head Start, 2007]
- In May, the House overwhelmingly passed the Improving Head Start Act (H.R. 1429) which expands and improves the successful Head Start childhood education program, including provisions to improve classroom and teacher quality and to expand access to Head Start and Early Head Start.
- In July, the House passed the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Act (H.R. 3043) which invests in raising the achievement levels of America’s students – providing $1.9 billion more than 2007 for giving low-income children extra help with reading and math, $300 million more for improving teacher quality, and $125 million more for providing after-school enrichment programs.
INCREASED FUNDING FOR HOUSING FOR LOW-INCOME FAMILIES – The House has passed a large initiative focused on expanding affordable housing – all at no expense to the U.S. taxpayer:
- On October 10th, the House passed the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act (H.R. 2895), which provides the largest expansion in federal housing programs in decades, with a goal of producing, rehabilitating and preserving 1.5 million affordable housing units over the next 10 years – with no cost to the U.S. taxpayer, instead turning to such funding sources as fees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
- On July 12th, the House passed the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (H.R. 1851) to provide housing for 100,000 families over the next five years, in addition to the close to two million households already benefiting from Section 8.
- The Section 8 bill improves the efficiency of Section 8, encourages self-sufficiency for low-income families, promotes homeownership and ensures that vouchers can be used to create affordable housing developments for seniors, the disabled, and homeless people.
PASSED LEGISLATION MANDATING HARSHER PENALTIES FOR THOSE GUILTY OF HATE CRIMES – In 2005, law enforcement reported more than 7,100 hate crimes. Many of those crimes were motivated by racial and ethnic bias.
- On May 3rd, the House passed the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (H.R. 1592) authorizing the Department of Justice to provide state and local law enforcement agencies technical, forensic, prosecutorial and other forms of assistance in the investigation and prosecution of hate crimes.
- On June 20th, the House overwhelmingly passed the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act (H.R. 923) establishing an Unsolved Crimes Section in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and an Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Investigative Office in the Civil Rights Unit of the FBI to investigate violations of criminal civil rights statutes in which the act occurred before January 1, 1970 and resulted in death. The legislation was named in honor of Emmett Till, a teenager who was brutally murdered and mutilated while on a summer vacation in Money, Mississippi in 1955.
PASSED LEGISLATION STRENGTHENING VOTER PROTECTION AND PREVENTING INTIMIDATION AT THE POLLING PLACE – African American voters have a right to participate in their constitutional right to political participation free of fear.
- On June 25th, the House passed the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act (H.R. 1281). This bill protects every American citizen’s right to vote by making voter deception a crime.
- H.R. 1281 is designed to prevent a repeat of the 2006 election when voters in minority communities were intentionally misled about voting dates and some naturalized citizens were threatened with arrest if they turned out to vote. The bill clearly defines and criminalizes voter deception, increases penalties for voter intimidation, and requires the Department of Justice to prevent and correct malicious misinformation campaigns designed to prevent citizens from voting or to mislead them on their way to the polls.
PASSED LEGISLATION HELPING GULF COAST COMMUNITIES RAVAGED BY HURRICANES KATRINA AND RITA.
- The House passed the Gulf Coast Housing Recovery Act (H.R. 1227) on March 21st, which is designed to speed up the rebuilding of homes and affordable rental units in the Gulf Coast region, including by freeing up $1.2 billion for the Louisiana Road Home program and helping to preserve the supply of affordable rental housing.
- On April 18th, the House passed the RECOVER Act (H.R. 1361) which includes numerous provisions to overhaul the Small Business Administration's disaster assistance program in response to SBA's disastrous performance after the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes and increases the individual disaster loan limit from $1.5 million to $3 million.
- With a bipartisan vote of 313-104, the House passed the Federal Housing Finance Reform/Affordable Housing Fund (H.R. 1427) on May 22nd. The bill creates a non-taxpayer financed Affordable Housing Fund over the next five years – estimated to be about $500 million a year. In the first year, grants from the fund would go exclusively to the Katrina-stricken areas of Louisiana and Mississippi. Then, in the next four years, grants would be allocated by formula to states.
- On August 1st, the House passed the Conference Report on the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (H.R. 1495) authorizing approximately $1.9 billion for the Corps of Engineers projects to restore the Louisiana Coastal Area and help prevent future hurricane damage. The conference report has also now been passed by the Senate.
PROVIDED HISTORIC INCREASE IN FUNDING FOR VETERANS AND FOR A PAY RAISE FOR BRAVE MEMBERS OF OUR MILITARY – The largest veterans’ funding increase in the history of the VA:
- There are 2.4 million African American veterans who have served this nation and more than 262,000 brave African American men and women who have served their country in Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001.
- In March, the House passed the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act (H.R. 1538), which responded to the scandal of the shocking living conditions and inattentive care at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other similar facilities by providing for the improvement of care of injured soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
- In June, the House passed the Military Construction/Veterans’ Affairs Appropriations bill (H.R. 2642), which provides the largest increase in veterans’ funding in the 77-year history of the Veterans’ Administration, $3.8 billion more than the President’s request, including significantly increasing the funding for veterans’ health care, including care for PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury.
- The House has also passed the Defense Department Authorization (H.R. 1585), which provides all service members a pay raise of 3.5 percent, higher than the President’s request, and will put $7.3 billion into the paychecks of our men and women in uniform over the next five years. The bill also will protect service members and retirees from TRICARE fee increases.
PASSED VITAL FARM AND NUTRITION LEGISLATION:
- On July 27th, the House passed H.R. 2419, the Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007, making funding permanent for the McGovern/Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program; increasing funding for conservation (Grasslands Reserve Program); and closing a tax loophole, involving foreign corporations taking advantage of international tax havens to escape U.S. taxes.
- This bill includes grants for a revision to the application and eligibility determination process for food stamps -- thereby improving access to food stamps, which help millions of American families every year.
- The bill also creates a Minority Farmer Advisory Committee – benefiting thousands of minority-owned farms across the United States.
- The bill also increases funding for agricultural and food sciences facilities at 1890 land-grant colleges including the Tuskegee University.
PASSED LEGISLATION STRENGTHENING THE GROWTH OF SMALL BUSINESSES – Small businesses create two-thirds of American jobs.
- African Americans own an estimated 1.2 million small businesses with annual revenues of more than $88 billion.
- In April, the House passed the Small Business Lending Improvements Act (H.R. 1332) which lowers the cost of financing for small businesses by modernizing SBA lending initiatives, allowing entrepreneurs to invest further in their ventures and create jobs.
- In May, the House passed the Small Business Fairness in Contracting Act (H.R. 1873) which strengthens small business by increasing the share of federal contracts going to small businesses and limiting the ability of federal agencies to bundle smaller projects into larger projects.
Recent Bills Introduced To Address Critical Needs Of The African American Community:
The Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2007 – Rep. Hilda Solis and 87 other Members of the House introduced the Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2007 in July, to help eliminate the persistent health disparities that leave millions of Americans in poor health and more likely to die prematurely during their most productive life years. Reps. Donna Christensen, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, and numerous other Members of the Congressional Black Caucus were original cosponsors of the legislation. The legislation addresses health work force diversity; culturally and linguistically appropriate health care; access to health care; and data collection and analysis.
The Local Community Radio Act of 2007 – Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Hilda Solis, Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Rep. Mike Doyle introduced the Local Community Radio Act in June, to increase the number of women and minorities who hold radio licenses. This legislation addresses the implications of the consolidation of media ownership in recent years – fewer and fewer women and minority owned stations. This legislation would expand Low Power FM stations – community-based, noncommercial radio stations that broadcast to neighborhoods in cities and towns across the country – making it possible for churches, schools and other groups to own a radio station serving their local community.
Other Congressional Activity of Note to the African American Community:
The Congressional Black Caucus, led by Chairwoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, has played a key role in bringing attention to the injustice of the Jena 6 – the six African American teenage students in Jena, Louisiana who have been singled out by a prosecutor wielding a judicial system that is being influenced by racial intolerance. Over the coming weeks, Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has been holding hearings to examine the situation further.
On April 19th, the House passed the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act (H.R. 1905) which would grant the District of Columbia full voting representation in the House. Unfortunately, the Senate failed to reach cloture ending debate on the issue, effectively stalling the bill indefinitely.
The 5th Annual Tri-Caucus Health Summit, hosted by Reps. Hilda Solis, Donna Christensen, Madeleine Bordallo, Joe Baca, Carolyn Kilpatrick and Michael Honda took place on July 20-21 in San Diego. The Summit brought together community and health advocates to raise awareness about health challenges facing communities of color and to learn more about the innovative work being done to address them. Some of the topics that were discussed during the Summit included: State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), foster care, homelessness, quality of care, chronic diseases, health care access, health professions, health information technology, and HIV/AIDS.