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COMMENTARY: The Congressional Black Caucus: Not Always in Headlines, but Never on the Sidelines

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “In celebrating the Congressional Black Caucus, I’m not touting their perfection, because the collective caucus is flawed as any other organization. My biggest bone to pick with Caucus members is all of them won’t sign or align themselves with HR 40, the reparations legislation that Congressman John Conyers (D-MI) introduced thirty years ago.”

Published

7 years ago

March 1, 2019

Oakland Post

By Julianne Malveaux, NNPA Newswire Contributor

Majority Whip James Clyburn

What does the Congressional Black Caucus do? It takes Majority Whip James Clyburn to make it understandable. “It’s not only what we make happen, but what we stop from happening,” Clyburn told a standing room only crowd at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Black History Month Celebration on February 26. His words are instructive for folks who get their news from sound bites and tweets. The legislative process is rarely fully televised, and those who put brakes on nonsense proposals never make the headlines. The February 26 event made it clear, in celebration, that the Congressional Black Caucus is often effective on the front lines and the sidelines.

The 116th Congress includes fifty-five members of the Congressional Black Caucus, an incredibly diverse group of African Americans who approach Black liberation (although some might not use the term) differently. Among the fifty-five, there are five who now chair House committees, including Congressional representatives Maxine Waters (D-CA), who chairs the Financial Services Committee, Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) who chairs the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, Robert “Bobby” Scott (D-VA) who chairs the Education and Labor Committee, Bennie Thompson (D-MS) who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, and Elijah Cummings (D-MD) who chairs the Government Oversight Committee. Cummings was the only one of the five who was not present, understandably so when one reflected on his leadership in the hearing that examined Michael Cohen, the jail-bound attorney who formerly represented the Nation’s Prevaricator-in-Chief.

Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Karen Bass

Each of them talked about the challenges they face in their roles, especially the fact that progressive legislation that leaves the House of Representatives is often unlikely to pass the Republican-dominated United States Senate and the obstreperous Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (my words, not theirs). But each also talked about issues they will address in their leadership. Congresswoman Waters can subpoena tax returns and bank records. She spoke of the many ways banking boards lack diversity and plans to establish a diversity and inclusion subcommittee as part of the Financial Services Committee. Bennie Thompson and Eddie Bernice Johnson talked about directing money to HBCUs and about the ways that some universities are able to get the majority of federal dollars. Congressman Bobby Scott intrigued me when he talked about the way the media is interested in drama, not substance. On a day when he dealt with both the minimum wage and higher education legislation, most of the questions he got from the media were about Blackface and other scandals in Virginia.

The search for the salacious has been the theme of the 45 administration. One does not have to search far to find payments to prostitutes, pandering to potentates, and other chicanery. The real trickery, however, is happening when our regulatory structure is being decimated, when payday lending rules are hanged by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to make predatory lending easier and more exploitative; when education regulations are being changed to make access for Black and other students of color even harder than it is now; when labor regulations are being changed to exploit unions. The federal minimum wage, at $7.25, has not increased in a decade. As such, the Raise The Wage Act should be making headlines. Instead, all cameras, all eyes are on the scandals that dominate this administration.

In celebrating the Congressional Black Caucus, I’m not touting their perfection, because the collective caucus is flawed as any other organization. My biggest bone to pick with Caucus members is all of them won’t sign or align themselves with HR 40, the reparations legislation that Congressman John Conyers (D-MI) introduced thirty years ago. Many say the reparations conversation is impractical. From my perspective, if you are interested in economic justice, you must be interested in restorative and reparatory justice for the descendants of the enslaved people who built this country. That means developing public policy to close the wealth gap. That means developing public policy to increase access to education. That means educating a nation with leaders and teachers who seem to think it is okay to run around in Blackface, hand children cotton bolls or more alarmingly, have children (in South Carolina) actually pick cotton and sing slave songs. That means examining the ways that racist (yes, racist) legislation has exacerbated, not closed the wealth gap.

Our Congressional Black Caucus and, indeed, the Democratic Party that all of them belong to, is flawed, but there are accomplishments, as well. The challenge for us is to lift up the accomplishments amidst a culture that values scandal instead of achievement.

Julianne Malveaux is an author and economist. Her latest book “Are We Better Off? Race, Obama and Public Policy” is available via www.amazon.com for booking, wholesale inquiries or for more info visit www.juliannemalveaux.com

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LIVE from the NMA Convention Raheem DeVaughn Says The Time Is Now: Let’s End HIV in Our Communities #2

Set against the backdrop of the NMA conference, Executive Officers from the National Medical Association, Grammy Award Winning Artist and Advocate Raheem DeVaughn, and Gilead Sciences experts, are holding today an important conversation on HIV prevention and health equity. Black women continue to be disproportionately impacted by HIV despite advances in prevention options. Today’s event […]

Published

7 days ago

February 3, 2026

Oakland Post

Black women continue to be disproportionately impacted by HIV despite advances in prevention options. Today’s event is designed to uplift voices, explore barriers to access, and increase awareness and key updates about PrEP, a proven prevention method that remains underutilized among Black women. This timely gathering will feature voices from across health, media, and advocacy as we break stigma and center equity in HIV prevention.

Additional stats and information to know:

● Black women continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV, with Black women representing more than 50% of new HIV diagnoses among women in the U.S. in 2022, despite comprising just 13% of women in the U.S.

● Women made up only 8% of PrEP users despite representing 19% of all new HIV diagnoses in 2022.

● Gilead Sciences is increasing awareness and addressing stigma by encouraging regular HIV testing and having judgment-free conversations with your healthcare provider about prevention options, including oral PrEP and long-acting injectable PrEP options.

● PrEP is an HIV prevention medication that has been available since 2012.

● Only 1 in 3 people in the U.S. who could benefit from PrEP were prescribed a form of PrEP in 2022.

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TRUMP: “Washington, D.C. is Safe”

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — President Trump, who typically travels with a full contingent of high-level protection, insinuated that he finally felt safe enough to go to dinner in the District of Columbia. “My wife and I went out to dinner last night for the first time in four years,” said the nation’s 47th president.

Published

7 days ago

February 3, 2026

Oakland Post

By Apriil Ryan
BlackPressUSA Washington Bureau Chief and White House Correspondent

“Washington, D.C. is safe,” President Trump declared from the Oval Office today. Those words came while Trump was hosting Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. During the question-and-answer session, which primarily focused on a peace deal in the Russian-Ukrainian war, Trump explained, “You did that in four days.” He was speaking of how fast the National Guard quelled the violence in what was once called Chocolate City.

The President deployed the National Guard to D.C. a week ago, to a city with reduced crime rates over the previous year. Violent crime dropped by 26%, marking the lowest level in 30 years. Homicides also fell by 11%.

President Trump, who typically travels with a full contingent of high-level protection, insinuated that he finally felt safe enough to go to dinner in the District of Columbia. “My wife and I went out to dinner last night for the first time in four years,” said the nation’s 47th president.

Trump reinforced his claim about the newly acquired safety in D.C. by relaying that a friend’s son is attending dinner in D.C., something he would not have done last year.

After the president finished his comments, a reporter/commentator in the room with close connections to Marjorie Taylor Greene jumped into the high-level conversation to affirm the president’s comments, saying, “I walked around yesterday with MTG. If you can walk around D.C. with MTG and not be attacked, this city is safe.”

That reporter was the same person who chastised President Zelenskyy months ago during his first Oval Office meeting with Trump for not wearing a business suit. Zelenskyy, a wartime President, has been clad in less formal attire to reflect the country’s current war stance against Russia.

Without any sourcing, President Trump also said, “People that haven’t gone out to dinner in Washington, D.C., in two years are going out to dinner, and the restaurants the last two days have been busier than they’ve been in a long time.”

The increase in policing in Washington, D.C. is because a 19-year-old former Doge employee was carjacked in the early hours of the morning recently.

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Rising Energy Costs Weigh Heaviest on Black Households

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — For many African American families, the cost of keeping the lights on and homes heated or cooled is not just a monthly bill — it’s a crushing financial burden.

Published

7 days ago

February 3, 2026

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

For many African American families, the cost of keeping the lights on and homes heated or cooled is not just a monthly bill — it’s a crushing financial burden.

A new national study from Binghamton University and California State University, San Bernardino, finds that Black households spend a far larger share of their income on energy compared to white households, even when income levels are the same. “We often say that African Americans suffer more, but we often blame it just on income. And the reality is, there is something more there,” study author George Homsy, associate professor at Binghamton University, wrote. “It’s not just because they tend to be poor. There is something that’s putting them at a disadvantage. I think what happened is it happens to be where they live.” The study, published in Energy Research & Social Science, analyzed 65,000 census tracts across the United States. It found that while the average American household spends about 3.2% of income on energy bills, households in the majority African American census tracts spend an average of 5.1%.

Homsy and researcher Ki Eun Kang point to the age and condition of housing stock, along with lower homeownership rates, as key drivers. Their research concludes that “energy burden is not simply a matter of income or energy cost but also race, which might be driven by place.” Older, less energy-efficient housing and high rental rates in Black communities mean residents often cannot make upgrades like improved insulation or new appliances, locking families into higher bills.

Tradeoffs and Health Risks

The consequences go beyond money. Families forced to spend 10% or more of their income on energy — what experts classify as “unmanageable” — may cut back on food, medicine, or other essentials. More than 12 million U.S. households report leaving their homes at unsafe temperatures to reduce costs, while millions more fall behind on utility bills. The health effects are severe. High energy burdens increase risks of asthma, depression, poor sleep, pneumonia, and even premature death. The issue is especially acute for African Americans, who are disproportionately exposed to housing and environmental conditions that amplify these risks.

Washington, D.C.: A Case Study

In Washington, D.C., the problem is particularly stark. A recent analysis by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) shows that SNAP-eligible households spend more than 20% of their income on energy bills. Across the metro area, nearly two-thirds of low-income households devote over 6% of their income to energy, and 40% face what researchers call a “severe financial strain,” paying more than 10%. Pepco, the District’s primary electricity provider, has implemented three consecutive annual rate hikes, pushing the average household bill to $114 per month as of January 2025. Shutoffs have followed — nearly 12,000 customers lost service in 2024, with disconnections doubling after a summer rate hike. Washington Gas has also sought a 12% rate increase and pushed a controversial $215 million pipeline replacement project, rebranded as “District SAFE.” The plan could ultimately cost D.C. households an additional $45,000 each over several decades, or nearly $1,000 annually added to bills.

Historical Roots

Researchers argue that these inequities are not accidental but rooted in history. The ScienceDirect study reveals that African American communities living in formerly redlined neighborhoods continue to face disadvantages today — from poor housing quality to higher climate risks. Homsy says policymakers must make targeted efforts. “It is harder to get to rental units where a lot of poor people live,” he noted. “We need to work harder to get into these communities of color.”