Full Citation
Title: Ending Black America's Permanent Economic Recession: Direct and Indirect Job Creation and Affirmative Action Are Necessary
Citation Type: Journal Article
Publication Year: 2021
ISBN:
ISSN:
DOI: 10.24926/25730037.627
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Abstract: Among the economic demands of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was a demand for a federal jobs program that would eliminate unemployment for African Americans. From the 1960s to today, Black Americans have been about twice as likely as White Americans to be unemployed. Consequently, Black people never achieve low unemployment. They can be said to be living in a permanent economic recession. This Article presents a suite of policies to end high unemployment in African American communities. The policies include those that work indirectly by increasing the demand for goods and services, and those that directly create jobs. Since anti-Black racial discrimination in the labor market is at the root of the persistently high rate of Black joblessness, a strong affirmative action program to counteract discrimination will also be needed. Some might think that a universal basic income is an acceptable alternative to a jobs program, but a job has economic, psychological, and sociological benefits beyond an income. A society that denies many African Americans the opportunity to work denies them not just an income, but also opportunities for identity, self-esteem, service, and social relationships. Ending the permanent recession in Black America is an important step toward providing equal opportunity in America.
Url: https://doi.org/10.24926/25730037.627
User Submitted?: No
Authors: Austin, Algernon
Periodical (Full): Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality
Issue: 2
Volume: 39
Pages: 255-293
Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Race and Ethnicity
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