WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris is announcing a plan to give Black men more economic and other opportunities to thrive, while working to energize a key voting bloc that has Democrats concerned about a lack of enthusiasm.
Harris’ plan includes providing forgivable business loans to Black entrepreneurs, creating more apprenticeships and studying sickle cell disease and other diseases that disproportionately affect African-American men.
Harris has already said she supports the legalization of marijuana and her plan calls for ensuring black men have the opportunity to participate as a “national cannabis industry takes shape.” She also calls for better regulation of cryptocurrency to protect Black men and others who invest in digital assets.
The vice president’s so-called “black male opportunity agenda” is aimed at boosting African-American men at a time when there are fears some will sit out the election rather than root for Harris or her opponent, the Republican former president to vote. Donald Trump.
The vice president unveiled the plan Monday, ahead of an evening campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, where she was scheduled to appear with Democratic Sen. John Fetterman. Her push comes after former President Barack Obama suggested last week that some black men “don’t feel like having a woman as president.”
The Harris campaign has also worked to build popular support other male voting blocsincluding Hispanics, by founding the group “Hombres con Harris,” Spanish for “Men with Harris.” The latest policy rollout is notable because it has the stated goal of motivating Black men to vote just weeks early Election Day.
Like her campaign with the group “Hombres,” Harris’ team has made plans to organize gender-specific gatherings. These include “Black Men Huddle Up” events in battleground states featuring African-American male celebrities for things like watching parties for NFL and NCAA football games. The campaign says new testimonial ads in battleground states featuring local black male voices are also planned.
Carlo Richmondco-chair of the Harris campaign and former Louisiana congressman, who is black, said Harris wants to build an economy “where black men are equipped with the tools to thrive: buy a home, provide for our families, start a business and build wealth build up.”
Black Americans strongly supported Joe Biden as he defeated Trump in 2020. Harris advisers say they are less concerned about the former president losing large percentages of Black male support than they are about some choosing not to show up at all.
Trump has also stepped up efforts to win over black and Hispanic voters of both genders. He held on round tables with black entrepreneurs in swing states and will sit at a town hall this week sponsored by Spanish-language Univision. He has also tried to openly stoke racial divisions, repeatedly suggesting that immigrants who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally are illegal. hiring jobs from black and Hispanic Americans.
Harris’ new round of proposals includes a promise that, if elected, she will help distribute 1 million loans of up to $20,000, which can be fully forgiven to Black entrepreneurs and others who have strong ideas to create a start a business. The loans would come through new partnerships between the Small Business Administration and community leaders and banks “with a proven commitment to their communities,” her campaign says.
The vice president also wants to provide federal incentives to encourage more African American men to train as teachers, citing statistics that black men will fill just over 1% of teacher training positions in public schools in 2020-2021 made up the country. of the National survey of teachers and principals.
Harris also pledges to expand existing federal programs that forgive some public service education loans to further encourage more Black male teachers. She also wants to use organizations like the National Urban League, local governments and the private sector to expand apprenticeships and credentialing opportunities in Black communities.
The vice president’s advisers have urged her to talk more about cryptocurrency as a way to appeal to male voters. Her campaign said that as president, Harris will support a regulatory framework intended to better protect investors in cryptocurrency and other digital assets popular with black men.
Harris also pledged to create a national initiative to better fund efforts to detect, research and combat sickle cell disease, diabetes, prostate cancer, mental health issues and other health issues that disproportionately affect Black men.
This is evident from a recent poll conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about seven in 10 black voters had a positive view of Harris and preferred her leadership over Trump’s on major policy issues, including the economy, health care, abortion, immigration and the war between Israel and Hamas.
There was little difference in support for Harris between black men and black women.