Racial Equity in America Jobs and Family Plan

Floor Speech

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Ms. PLASKETT. Mr. Speaker, the Biden administration's proposed $2.65 trillion American Jobs Plan contains a commitment of resources and investments to overcome structural economic inequity, driven by decades of racial and gender discrimination and exclusion.

In addition to being undercapitalized by the PPP in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Black business owners experienced an acute decline of 41 percent in their numbers; Latinx businesses fell by 32 percent; Asian businesses, 26 percent. Compounding these inequities, Black, Indigenous, and people of color, particularly, women of color, have been hardest hit by unemployment and job losses.

These groups have been left behind and held back for far too long, resulting in multigenerational poverty, wage, and wealth gaps. To meet the moment, House Democrats are proposing systemic solutions rooted in equity to ensure prosperity for all Americans. These solutions are driven by targeted, long-term investments to improve our infrastructure by igniting our economy for equity, baking in accountability to equitable practices and outcomes and fostering an ecosystem where the safety, health, and well-being of the people are a priority.

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