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According
to the report, African-American men are more than twice
as likely to be unemployed as white males while earning
74 percent as much per year. They are nearly seven times
more likely to be incarcerated, with average jail sentences
about 10 months longer than those of white men, the
report said.
In
addition, it said, black males between 15 and 34 are
nine times more likely to be killed by firearms and
nearly eight times as likely to suffer from AIDS.
``I
could rattle off the names of African-American men who
have overcome the odds and have risen to national prominence,''
Morial said. ``But for all the Barack Obamas, Tony Dungys
and Colin Powells out there ... there are many more
black men who face very limited opportunities and diminished
expectations.''
``It's
not enough to have role models to give them hope,''
he added. ``We need a public commitment in the form
of concrete policy strategies to help lift them out
of their state of underachievement and put them on equal
footing with white men in this nation.''
Obama,
the Illinois senator who is a top contender for the
Democratic presidential nomination, wrote the report's
foreword.
``The
crisis of the black male is our crisis,'' he wrote.
``It is in our shared interest and in the interest of
every American to stop ignoring these challenges and
start finding the solutions that will work.''
On
several key measurements, the report found greater disparities
between black and white men than between black and white
women.
For
example, it said unemployment for black men was 9.5
percent, compared to 4 percent for white men, while
the jobless rate for black women was 8.5 percent, compared
to 4.1 percent for white women.
In
terms of annual median income, black men earned less
than 75 percent of what white men did, $34,443 vs. $46,807.
Black women made 87 percent of what white women made
even though they earned $5,000 less than black men _
$29,588 a year.
The
report did highlight a few bright spots for blacks of
both genders, for example in the improved readiness
level of children entering elementary school.
However,
the report cited a widening gap after elementary school
as blacks begin to fall behind on standardized tests.
In fourth grade, the report said, blacks perform at
a level of 87 percent of whites; by the time they reach
12th grade, their scores are at 74 percent of whites.
By
high school, blacks are more likely to drop out _ 15
percent compared to 12 percent for whites. For black
males, the percentage rises to 18 percent compared to
14 percent of white males, the report said.
In
an essay accompanying the report, University of California,
Berkeley, lecturer Christopher Knaus said the rising
emphasis on standardized testing would not yield major
improvements as long as heavily minority schools had
the least experienced teachers and highest faculty turnover.
``The
curricula in most public schools also fails to adequately
engage black students,'' Knaus wrote. ``Disinterested
students who are labeled as problems or disruptive often
become the victims of 'zero tolerance' policies. ...contributing
to the school-to-prison pipeline, especially among black
males.''
The
report suggested that all-male schools with a strong
emphasis on mentoring could help keep black boys ``focused
on their education and away from distractions that could
lead them down the wrong paths.''
The
Urban League also recommended increased federal support
for a summer jobs program in cities nationwide, and
stressed that any overall progress will need a boost
from parents.
``They
must continually talk to their children about how much
better off they will be by graduating from high school
and college,'' it said.
___
On
the Net:
National
Urban League: http://www.nul.org/
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