OPINION:
New polling data shows Black voter turnout dipped below pre-Obama levels in the 2022 midterm elections. That should be no surprise given that the Biden administration’s policies have led to record inflation, surging crime and crumbling education systems — all of which are disproportionately affecting minority communities.
The 2024 election is an opportunity for candidates on the right to win over these voters. Republican leaders who are able to integrate a comprehensive, data-backed platform rooted in conservative principles and real results will naturally appeal to voters frustrated with the status quo — particularly in communities whose support liberals have taken for granted.
Such a policy platform would deliver a better quality of life to everyday Americans, expose the Democrats’ empty political promises and pandering, and help increase Republican support in election cycles to come.
As a Black American, I know what it feels like to be left behind. I grew up in an underserved neighborhood in Cleveland where poverty, gang violence, addiction and other social issues were rampant.
I managed to immerse myself in education, football, and books that shaped my worldview and got me out.
But so many people from my community didn’t share that experience. The addiction, poverty, and lack of mentorship in my neighborhood — like so many others — created a vicious cycle.
I’ve spent my life trying to identify policies that can break that cycle of poverty. Growing up, I believed that Democrats wanted social advancement while Republicans wanted to oppress Black people.
It was not until college that I realized that Democrats’ social safety programs haven’t lifted Black Americans out of poverty as politicians promise.
The wealth gap between White and Black families persists at a jaw-dropping 12-to-1 ratio. And well-meaning social welfare programs have had dire unintended consequences.
For example, redlining — a government-sponsored attempt to create affordable housing — pushed people of color into housing projects and effectively blocked them from suburban communities.
On the other hand, conservative, market-based solutions can help the Black community rise, and a winning track record backs them. I was privileged enough to work on some historic policy wins for the Black community as an adviser to former President Donald Trump, from securing permanent funding for historically Black colleges and universities to the passage of the First Step Act in 2018.
These policies prove that real change is possible. Presidential candidates should focus on four critical lanes of focus for uplifting the underserved: health and safety, education and workforce development, economic development, and entrepreneurship.
One of my colleagues in the Trump White House, Chris Pilkerton, and I lay out such a policy playbook in our new book, “Underserved,” which discusses Abraham Lincoln’s vision for helping underserved Americans during Reconstruction and how to apply that vision to today’s world.
Underserved communities face higher levels of trauma, which is often passed down through generations and can manifest as physical and mental health issues, such as diabetes and PTSD. Health struggles can limit economic mobility and spur involvement with the criminal justice system.
To address these issues, candidates should push to launch coalitions of community leaders, mental health professionals, law enforcement, and local advocacy groups. Together, they can work to address health issues and build on the criminal justice reform work we kick-started in the Trump White House.
We worked across partisan lines to pass the First Step Act, which has helped close to 20,000 formerly incarcerated people safely return to their communities — helping families stay together and improving public safety in the process. Serious candidates should consider adapting smart-on-crime criminal justice reforms like the First Step Act to their platforms.
Beyond public safety, candidates must focus on economic development for underserved communities. The poverty rate for Black Americans is more than double that of White Americans.
Market-based policies that help minority-owned small businesses can help shrink this gap to the benefit of everyone. During my time in the White House, we created 8,700 “opportunity zones” — areas where businesses are offered tax incentives to relocate and develop — in communities nationwide. The program led to the creation of between 800,000 and 1.2 million jobs in underserved areas.
But economic development policy can be successful only if we simultaneously address education and workforce development gaps. Countless businesses that reopened after the pandemic report skills and education gaps, especially in underserved communities.
Government leaders should create partnerships between nonprofits and companies in technology, finance, manufacturing and energy to help train a strong and skilled workforce.
It’s also imperative for minority communities to have access to top-notch education. During my time in the White House, we established permanent funding for historically Black colleges and universities so that these schools — pillars of advancement offering world-class education to Black Americans — could concentrate on education rather than fundraising.
The policy allowed several HBCUs to fund operational budgets and repay loans that, gone unpaid, would have put them in financial jeopardy.
Finally, it’s essential to recognize that underserved populations face an intergenerational mistrust of financial institutions based on historical wrongs and tend to rely on government programs that can make wealth-building difficult. To remedy this, candidates should plan on establishing a coalition of financial services firms to expand access to capital and improve financial literacy in underserved communities.
Black America has been overlooked for too long. Market-based, data-backed solutions to improve economic and racial equality have the potential to galvanize the support of underserved communities currently avoiding the polls.
As we approach the 2024 presidential race, candidates must be willing to take a strong stand on this issue and embark on new policy avenues that work for all Americans.
• Ja’Ron Smith, who leads the Public Safety Solutions for America coalition, was the 2020 recipient of the Bipartisan Justice Award for his work in the Trump administration and is co-author of the forthcoming book “Underserved: Harnessing the Principles of Lincoln’s Vision for Reconstruction for Today’s Forgotten Communities.”
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