Political Quotes

“Kristof states that he has ``looked at Black- White economic inequality that is greater in America today than it was in apartheid South Africa, at ongoing discrimination against African Americans in the labor market, and at systematic bias in law enforcement.'' So young people of color, especially young men, have been left behind in the economic recovery. It is leaving them behind, and far too often, they are marginalized and forgotten. The poverty rate for African Americans is 27.2 percent, more than two-and-a-half times the rate of poverty of White Americans. Nobody in our country should have to live below the poverty line. We are the wealthiest and most powerful country in the world. The African American unemployment rate is 10.9 percent, nearly twice the national average. Young men of color are stopped and frisked at will. They are more incarcerated than any other group. The jobs that are available don't pay enough to get by while our safety net and nutrition programs continue to be hacked and slashed by House Republicans. Beyond the lack of opportunity, police misconduct and the criminal justice system are constant reminders of the tragic inequality which is still persistent in the daily life of Black America. Where do we go from here? Let's move forward, but we have got to remember that the deaths of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin and Eric Garner and Oscar Grant--one of my constituents--their deaths are tragic examples of the senseless murder of young Black men.…”