For several years now, sincere, Left-leaning Black male political analysts have been warning Democrats that could lose enough Black men’s votes to alter the outcome of a presidential election. As Democrats have reached out to many other demographics, advocating for them with rhetoric and policy, a small but growing number of Black men have felt left behind and ignored, watching Democrats seek to gain favor with groups who have been less devoted to the Party.
A recent nationwide poll conducted by the NAACP found that 26 percent of Black men under the age of 50 supported former President Donald Trump in the upcoming election, with the economy being their top issue. While Harris holds a massive lead over Trump among Black voters as a whole, swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Georgia will undoubtedly be determined by which candidate turns out their base. Harris cannot afford to lose votes either to Trump or to attrition.
That’s why on Monday morning, Vice President Harris charted a new course for Democrats by directly reaching out to Black men and addressing their economic concerns.
US Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris walks to board Air Force Two as she departs for New York at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on October 7, 2024.
EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
The Vice President has made supporting small business growth a key staple of her campaign. While Donald Trump touts his utterly failed Opportunity Zones program to African Americans, Harris’ plan is to invest in Black men realizing the American Dream of innovation and ownership. There is dignity in all work, but many young, working-class Black men want to work for themselves rather than do hourly work for faceless corporations. Harris plans to have 1 million loans of up to $20,000 for entrepreneurs from underserved communities. Understanding that nine out 10 business startups fail, the loans are also fully forgivable.
The plan also calls for decriminalizing marijuana nationwide and helping Black men join the booming recreational cannabis industry. It’s a welcome idea, and not the reversal many are calling it. Vice President Harris’s record on criminal justice has always been misconstrued. She sent very few people to state prison for a marijuana convictions as District Attorney of San Francisco. Harris actually started a program called “Back on Track” in 2005, which had the stated objective of reducing “recidivism among low level drug trafficking defendants.” The program was wildly successful and became a model for districts around the country.
Compare that with her opponent in the race. Former President Donald Trump’s approach to criminal justice is far more punitive. In addition to expanding the racially disparate death penalty and giving police officers full immunity for illegal brutality, Trump has promised to reincarcerate people who are in home confinement. Home confinement allows people with minor convictions to maintain jobs and continue with education or job training. It helps families, especially Black men, to maintain familial ties with their children and continue providing for their families. In 2018, Donald Trump did sign the First Step Act. Yet since then, we have heard nothing about a second or third step. His plans for a second term on criminal justice will be a step backward for Black men both socially and economically.
Harris also plans to incentivize Black men to become teachers. This part of her plan is a major investment in Black men and families. As of 2021, Black men comprised just 1.3 percent of teachers, despite Black students making up 15 percent of the student body nationally. Research shows that having Black male teachers raises graduation rates for Black students. A 2018 study found that contact with a Black male elementary school teacher decreases dropout rates by 39 percent for Black boys and increases college aspirations by 19 percent. More education often means a better economic future for Black men and their families.
To be extremely clear, if Vice President Harris loses this election, it will not fall upon the shoulders of Black men. African American men trail only Black women in their loyalty to the Democratic Party. With women’s bodily autonomy and healthcare on the ballot, one could certainly look to white women.
Still, Vice President Harris is working to earn Black men’s votes by addressing their economic, social, and healthcare needs with her new plan. The only concern is if it will reach the intended audience quickly enough to garner their enthusiasm.
Dr. Jason Nichols is an award winning senior lecturer in the African American Studies Department at the University of Maryland College Park and was the longtime editor-in-chief of Words Beats & Life: The Global Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.
