Black Unemployment, Lowest in Two Years, Still Much Too High

By Hazel Trice Edney

CBC Chairman Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.)

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Unemployment in the Black community is now at its lowest in exactly two years, according to the newest numbers reported from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the gap between Black and White statistics remains vast.

The drop in the Black unemployment rate – nearly a whole percentage in one month - has received applause by the Congressional Black Caucus, but CBC Chairman Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) makes it clear the numbers are still drastically high.

“I am pleased that the number of private sector jobs grew by 104,000 over the past month, representing the twentieth straight month of increase, bringing the overall unemployment rate down to 9.0 percent and African-American unemployment from 16 percent to 15.1 percent, but there are still far too many Americans out of work,” Cleaver said in a statement. “By now, we should all understand the stagnant economic condition in which our country finds itself. The economy will only continue to worsen if we do not act quickly to address it.  Politics has continued to trump legislative productivity—providing policy solutions that create opportunities for the American people so that they can care for themselves and their families.”

Despite the drop in Black unemployment, the gap between races is still incredibly apparent. The White unemployment rate has remained consistent at 8 percent for the past three months. In fact the White unemployment rate has never risen above 9.4 percent over the past decade, always remaining well below the national average and always nearly half that of the Black rate. The 15.1 percent rate for African-Americans is the lowest since August 2009, when the rate reached 15 percent.

Cleaver, who spent the summer on a cross-country jobs tour with his CBC colleagues, wasted no time pointing out that while the economy shows signs of hope, the Obama jobs bill remains stuck amidst political wrangling in the Senate.

"This week marked 300 days into the 112th Congress with no action on jobs,” he said in response to the new stats, released Nov. 4. “The Republican Leadership continues to bring forth divisive ideas instead of ensuring that we do our job as legislators and pass a comprehensive jobs bill.”

President Obama was in Cannes, France talking global economics at the G-2 Summit when the numbers were released. He gave his reaction during a press conference there, appearing to dismiss presidential politics – but focused on the quagmire in the Senate.

“I have to tell you the least of my concerns at the moment is the politics of a year from now,” Obama said in response to a question. "I'm worried about putting people back to work right now, because those folks are hurting and the U.S. economy is underperforming. And so everything that we're doing here … at the G20 mirrors our efforts back home - that is, how do we boost growth; how do we shrink our deficits in a way that doesn't slow the recovery right now; how do we make sure that our workers are getting the skills and the training they need to compete in a global economy.  And not only does the American Jobs Act answer some of the needs for jobs now, but it will also lay the foundation for future growth through investments in infrastructure, for example.”

He continued, “My hope is, is that the folks back home, including those in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, when they look at today’s job numbers - which were positive but indicate once again that the economy is growing way too slow - that they think twice before they vote “no” again on the only proposal out there right now that independent economists say would actually make a dent in unemployment right now.  There’s no excuse for inaction.

CBC members held job fairs in high employment cities across the nation last summer. Thousands came out to apply for jobs, sometimes lining up at 5 a.m. to wait for doors to open at 9.