White House, NAACP Seek More Black Support for Jobs Act

High unemployment for African Americans demands swift action, NAACP says

The White House Tuesday touted the American Jobs Act as the best solution for the short and long-term economic health of African Americans, emphasizing that President Barack Obama’s message that inaction on the part of his opponents is not acceptable amid crises in both the jobs and housing market.

The NAACP’s Washington bureau and the White House conducted a conference call Tuesday as a part of the President’s broad plan to educate Americans on the policy.

A few highlights:

• The plan will provide over 100,000 Black-owned small businesses with tax cuts, and provide bonuses for businesses which increase their payroll.

• The President is proposing Project Rebuild, a $15 billion plan to put construction workers back to work rehabilitating hundreds of thousands of foreclosed homes, businesses and communities.

• For nearly 1.5 million African American families, President Obama is seeking to extend unemployment benefits for Americans the long-term unemployed.

• The President is also seeking to drum up support for year-round and summer subsidized jobs for African American youth, among whom unemployment stands at a whopping 32.4%.

For more info on how the American Jobs Act will help African American workers, download this PDF.