President Joe Biden turned the spotlight on racial equity and economic progress at the National Action Network Convention today, touting his administration's efforts to level the playing field for communities of color. Speaking to crowds, Biden laid out his achievements, including reducing bias within the home appraisal process and boosting federal contracts for small disadvantaged businesses (SDBs).
While the Biden administration pushes forward, there's pushback: 80% of Congressional Republicans are rallying behind a plan that would defund these executive orders on racial equity. Their strategy includes cuts to Medicare, the Affordable Care Act, and Social Security, alongside undoing tax incentives for small businesses transitioning to a cleaner economy. According to the White House, this could mean higher costs for prescriptions, energy, and housing while doling out tax breaks to the wealthiest and largest corporations.
Contrastingly, the administration's achievements include slicing the "appraisal gap" by over 40%, as per the Federal Housing Finance Agency's data. Such a gap refers to homes in communities of color being undervalued compared to those in predominantly white areas. Biden's PAVE initiative, established on the centenary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, has made critical headway against appraisal bias, potentially aiding in wealth-building for Black Americans and other people of color.
Furthermore, agencies have surpassed Biden's SDBs federal contracting dollars target, awarding a record $76.2 billion in Fiscal Year 2023. This investment is a leap toward the President's goal of 15% to SDBs by 2025, said to narrow racial wealth disparities according to analysis by the White House Council of Economic Advisers. The achievement underlines an unwavering commitment to leveraging talents nationwide, even as the administration faces legal challenges seeking to undermine these very efforts.
Aiding economic relief, Biden's team has authorized the cancellation of $7.4 billion in student loan debt for 277,000 borrowers, which brings total relief to $153 billion for 4.3 million Americans. The move is expected to offer financial stability for countless families and tackle the disproportionate debt burden on communities of color. The administration's plans include canceling runaway interest for over 25 million borrowers and student debt for those experiencing hardship or eligible for forgiveness programs but who are yet to enroll.
Economic indicators already reflect positive changes, with Black unemployment rates reaching record lows under Biden's watch. The Black community saw its wealth increase by 60% since pre-pandemic times, and business ownership more than doubled from 2019 to 2022. Evidently, as Biden pointed out, these efforts aim to deliver the American promise for all communities, especially the long-marginalized Black Americans.
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