The 'Hood' Needs You: Support HR 4812 - “Local Jobs for America Act”

I've talked and talked y'all to death about how little anything is being done by the gov't to rescue our urban communities predominantly inhabited by people of color. Of that $787 billion dollar Stimulus Package of last year? Only about 1% has trickled down into these very communities.

Well, thanks to Congressmen Keith Ellison [MN-5] and George Miller [CA-7], the "Local Jobs for America Act," has been proposed on the floor of Congress. It is estimated that this bill would create up to 1 million jobs in communities that need it the most. Here's more from the good folks of colorofchange.org:

The economic crisis has hit Black folks especially hard — the unemployment rate is almost twice as high among African-Americans as among Whites. The picture is especially bleak for Black men — 19% are currently jobless [link].

Unless Congress does something big to create new jobs — and soon — the situation could just keep getting worse. Each wasted day means more lost jobs, more foreclosed homes, and more medical bankruptcies — all of which will drag the economy down even further.

The Local Jobs for America Act (H.R.4812) would do a lot to help. The bill would allocate $75 billion for creating and saving 750,000 jobs, with the most funds going to economically depressed areas [link].  It would allocate $25 billion to hire and retain teachers, police officers, and firefighters. Another $500 million would go to support on-the-job training programs.

Congressman Ellison has challenged us all to convince enough of our representatives to support this bill that its passage will be guaranteed. It’s a tall order, but Ellison has already gathered an amazing 139 cosponsors in just a few weeks. Now we must take advantage of that momentum.

So what can you do? First off, you must realize the positive impact this measure will provide. Secondly, take it upon yourself and encourage others to contact their representatives in Washington DC, to support this bill. To do so, take a moment to show your support by clicking the following link and helping the folks at colorofchange.org encourage Congress to sign onto a statement asking your representative to support the 'Local Jobs for America Act'. Lastly, do me a huge favor of spreading the word on this throughout the blogosphere and beyond, will you?

Support the Local Jobs for America Act


(AP photo/Paul Sancya)