InsideSources

Black women are uniquely disadvantaged in the workforce despite the critical role they play in the economy, argued lawmakers and experts during a discussion Thursday.

The Economic Policy Institute (EPI), a progressive research nonprofit, hosted the discussion to examine the state of black women in the economy. Democratic Reps. Keith Ellison and Bonnie Watson Coleman talked before a panel of experts who detailed how black women contribute to the economy and the problems they still face.

The panel of experts discussed the unique obstacles black women face economically – both systemic and otherwise. The experts also highlighted the many roles that black women play in the economy along with how collective action, advocacy, community-based solutions, and federal policy can help address the problems they face.

“What can be more important than making sure American families who have suffered literally decades of racial discrimination get the full measure of economic prosperity,” Ellison, who serves as a vice chairman on the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said. “So many of those families are led by black women. The challenge so often is we do live in a country with a severe racial wealth gap.”

EPI has closely followed the status of black women in the economy – including studies and panel discussions over the years. It found in a report last year that black women are paid only 67 cents on average for every dollar a non-Hispanic white man makes, even when education, years of experience, and location were taken into account.

“Obviously, we know that black women are critical to the economic success of their families, and they play a central role in our economy,” Coleman, who serves as the co-chair for the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls, said. “Despite their vital importance to their families and to the economy, African American women face unique barriers that could undermine their ability to work and thrive.”

The panel examined a long list of obstacles that black women face and some possible ways to fix that. Black women, according to the panel, tend to have a higher burden of paid and unpaid tasks, have a relatively high labor force participation rate, and have been historically disadvantaged by laws that are meant to protect workers.

“So what can be better than to have a discussion about how to set forth a series of policies that make black women the priority, the center of the conversation, focusing on and lifting up black women?” Ellison said. “The goal is to really come up with a list of policy initiatives where we partner with the black caucus and the women’s black caucus.”

Black Women’s Equal Pay Day was also observed this past year to discuss the obstacles they face in the economy. EPI, labor unions, and other progressive groups utilized social media and research on July 31 to highlight the issue. The Center for American Progress held a panel discussion with several experts to mark how far into the year African American women must work to earn the same amount as white men did the year before.

The gender pay gap generally has been disputed by some critics over how much discrimination actually plays a role. The contested claim often misses nuances that could account for the difference. Lawmakers and researchers have put forth numerous solutions on how to address wage inequality generally. Some have suggested raising the minimum wage while others have looked at underlying economic concerns like productivity.

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Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders and other leading progressives are rumored to be reintroducing a bill Wednesday that would increase the national minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Sanders has been a leading lawmaker pushing for the $15 minimum wage. He might soon be reintroducing a bill that would increase the minimum wage nationally. He is expected to be joined by Sen. Patty Murray, alongside Reps. Keith Ellison, Bobby Scott, and Raúl Grijalva.

Sanders first hinted his intent to reintroduce the bill Apr. 7. He posted online, at the time, that the current federal standard was an insult to workers.  Bloomberg reporter Josh Eidelson posted online Monday that all five progressive lawmakers are expected to put forth the bill midweek.

“The federal minimum wage of $7.25 is an insult to the workers of this country,” a post on Sanders’ Facebook page stated. “Our job is to ensure that anyone who works 40 hours a week in America should not be living in poverty. We need to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour and I will be introducing legislation soon to do just that.”

Sanders made the policy a critical component of his presidential run. He originally introduced the legislation in July 2015 with the intent of making the policy national. He has also participated in many rallies and speeches in support of the policy.

New York and California alongside a list of cities have already passed the increase. Seattle was followed by other cities when it first passed the increase in June 2014. Labor unions and other progressive advocates helped make the policy a national issue.

The Fight for $15 movement has been at the forefront of the minimum wage debate since it started in November 2012. The movement is primarily supported by labor unions like the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). The Center for Union Facts found the union spent over $19 million on the Fight for $15 last year.

The Fight for $15 and other supporters argue the policy is a great way to lift low-wage workers out of poverty. They have argued the current minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is too low for people to reasonably live on. The increase might also spur economic growth as workers are able to spend more.

Those opposed to the increase warn it will actually hurt the poor by reducing employment opportunities. Employers could be forced to reduce their staff or increase prices to overcome the added cost of labor. Some critics have even expressed concern that the movement backers have alternative motives.

“This is a good idea for helping line the pockets of big labor bosses, but it’s a terrible burden on workers across the country,” America Rising Squared Communications Director Jeremy Adler told InsideSources. “Even though millions would lose their jobs and have their hours slashed, this group of unabashed left-wingers would rather appease the unions that funnel money into their campaign accounts, instead of working on common-sense policies to create jobs and expand economic opportunity to more Americans.”

America Rising is a nonprofit research group that promotes conservative policies. It has been highly critical of efforts to increase the minimum wage.

The National Bureau of Economic Research and The Heritage Foundation found the increase will have a significant impact on employment. They found the risk is especially bad for young and low-skilled workers. The University of California, Berkeley found any losses would be marginal compared to the potential benefits.

Sanders, Murray, Ellison, Scott, and Grijalva did not respond to a request for comment by InsideSources.

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After an unsuccessful run for chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Ray Buckley wants to change the way the national party does its elections–yet how much influence and power he wields in the new DNC leadership is still largely unknown.

In an email to DNC members, Buckley, the chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party (NHDP), laid out his proposal on how to improve campaigns and elections for officers in the coming years. He noted that an impressive $4 million was spent in the DNC chairman’s election, an unprecedented number of candidates ran, and the race was in the national spotlight in a way that it hasn’t been in the past.

“It is likely that the level of interest we saw this year will continue, and so it is a good time to examine whether any reforms or changes could improve the process, while insuring more fairness, accountability, and transparency,” he wrote.

His proposal includes campaign finance limits and full disclosure of receipts and expenditures. He suggested limiting contributions to $500 per donor and not accepting any “dark money.”

“As the party that opposes big money and corporate money in politics, I also would limit donations to individual donors, labor, and progressive organizations,” he wrote. “No donations from any business, corporation or their PAC [political action committee] or lobbyists would be permitted.”

He would also forbid DNC employees, consultants, or even employees of consulting firms that do business with the DNC from publicly or privately supporting a candidate for DNC officer.

WMUR was the first to report about Buckley’s plan.

It’s not immediately clear if any of his proposals would be implemented under the new DNC order.

Despite having the most party leadership experience of the lot, he was still a dark horse candidate. Buckley was vice chair for the DNC and president of the Association for State Democratic Chairs (ASDC), which led him to have many voting members as friends and allies.

The two frontrunners, Minnesota Representative Keith Ellison and Tom Perez, labor secretary under President Barack Obama, stole the headlines at the various debates and forums. It was essentially a Clinton versus Sanders match up again, since Ellison backed former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and Perez was a supporter of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

Buckley eventually dropped out of the election, shortly before the DNC chair vote in February, endorsing Ellison for the post. Ultimately, Perez won the chair and made Ellison a deputy chair.

The DNC chair race revealed deep wounds for the Democratic Party, which still had not healed from the hotly contested battle between Sanders and Clinton for the presidential nomination. Some Democrats claim the DNC favored Clinton when it was supposed to be neutral. The Wikileaks emails didn’t help the cause, revealing that former DNC chairs Debbie Wasserman-Schulz and Donna Brazile coordinated with the Clinton campaign during the primaries.

After his victory, Perez vowed to heal the party and bring a unified Democratic Party to defeat President Donald Trump’s agenda and beat Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections, but Buckley’s role in the national party has changed since he ran for the chairmanship.

He’s no longer a vice chair for the DNC and there is a new president for the ASDC, with Buckley’s position now listed as “president emeritus.” Although Perez made Ellison a deputy chair after the close election between the two, the position is largely symbolic and doesn’t have any official duties. Even though Buckley backed Ellison, and Ellison has a prominent position, it’s not clear if their agenda would be enacted.

Ellison was recently in New Hampshire for his first public appearance as deputy chair at the NHDP’s state committee meeting on March 25, where Buckley was reelected as state party chairman for a sixth term. Ellison and Buckley argued that the party has been too focused on the White House and not enough on the state legislatures and governorships.

“We’ve got to have a higher vision than just winning an election,” Ellison said. “When we set our sights as really agents and champions for the American people, people start feeling the flow.”

On top of that, Perez is launching a major overhaul of the party’s organization, requesting resignation letters from all current staffers. While it’s usually routine to see major turnover under new leadership, the mass exodus allows Perez to completely rebuild the DNC and determine how it should be structured in the future.

“It sounds good if you’re looking for change, but it’s not what people were clamoring for,” said liberal New Hampshire radio host Arnie Arnesen to The Boston Herald about the DNC shakeup.

“They weren’t angry at the people working within the base of the Democratic Party. They were furious with the leadership. I’m not sure that gets us to the goal,” she added. “I think it hurts a lot of little people. Is that what the Democratic Party is supposed to be known for?”

As for Buckley, it looks like he’s going to be focused on New Hampshire for a while. He’s going to focus on strengthening local communities and grassroots ahead of 2018, with the hopes of flipping the state legislature and taking back the corner office. Will he, or his platform, still be heard up the ranks at the DNC, though? Only time will tell.

“With all that we’ve accomplished, 2016 is a prime example of why we cannot afford to rest on our laurels,” he wrote in a Monday op-ed for the New Hampshire Union Leader. “We know that our economic and social progress means Democratic ideas are working, and our electoral success shows Granite Staters understand that. But we need now more than ever to put our nose to the grindstone and keep fighting.”

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