Unfair: Black Leaders Cannot Allow House Bill that Would Further Disadvantage Black Men

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Rebecca Stewart

Telephone: 513-479-3335

Unfair: Black Leaders Cannot Allow House Bill that Would Further Disadvantage Black Men

WASHINGTON / March 17, 2022 – Rep. Robin Kelly of Illinois has introduced a bill, the “Protect Black Women and Girls Act,” that would address the concerns of Black women and girls, but ignores the historic disadvantages faced by Black men. The CEDV calls on Black leaders to speak out in opposition to this unfair and unconstitutional bill.

The stated purpose of Rep. Kelly’s bill, H.R. 6268, would be to “Establish an Interagency Task Force to examine the conditions and experiences of Black women and girls in education, economic development, healthcare, labor and employment, housing, justice and civil rights, to promote community-based methods for mitigating and addressing harm and ensuring accountability, and to study societal effects on Black women and girls, and for other purposes.” (1)

The bill does not propose to address any of the vexing problems experienced by Black men or boys.

The disadvantages confronting Black males have been extensively documented. The Brookings Institution, for example, sponsored an event titled, “The Challenges Facing Black Men – And the Case for Action.” The event documented how Black men are lagging in terms of educational attainment, upward mobility, earnings, labor force participation, unemployment, life expectancy, treatment by the criminal system, and more. The report concludes, “No other demographic group has fared as badly, so persistently and for so long.” (2)

In the area of domestic violence (3), Black men are more likely than Black women to be victims of sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking. Each year (4):

48 million Black men (Table 5.6)
38 million Black women (Table 5.3)

Despite this fact, four out of five arrests for partner abuse are of men (4).

The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees “equal protection of the laws” to all persons. African-Americans have a history with persons in power who have ignored the most vulnerable persons in our communities.

Black leaders are urged to contact Rep. Kelly and express their opposition to the “Protect Black Women and Girls Act.” Call her office: (202) 225-0773.

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