Congressional Black Caucus RSS Articles

Congressional Black Caucus Amplifies Call to Hold Conference to Improve 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644)

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement:

“For years, members of the Congressional Black Caucus have led the charge in addressing the housing crisis in the United States Congress. The actions and decisions made thus far by the Trump Administration have added further pressure to the already severe shortage of affordable housing options across the country. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644) offers an opportunity to achieve a largely bipartisan solution to the affordable housing challenges impacting families nationwide. However, it is critical that, as lawmakers, we conduct due diligence to ensure that H.R. 6644 is equipped with all the necessary tools to alleviate housing costs for hardworking Americans.

“Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, has requested a conference to improve and strengthen H.R. 6644 due to the Senate version’s omission of key provisions—namely, provisions that would broaden access to homeownership, expedite the construction of manufactured housing, expand the availability of small-dollar mortgages, better protect borrowers and families living in public or assisted housing, enhance federal oversight of housing providers, and lay the groundwork for the development of new affordable homes across America. Congresswoman Waters and Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, who serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, led the House in securing these provisions, which were pivotal to its overwhelmingly bipartisan passage and widely supported by advocacy organizations within the housing community.

“It is absolutely imperative that the House and Senate conference on this legislation to restore these critical provisions. Any legislation that fails to do so is not in service to the communities we are elected to represent. It is our responsibility to ensure that families across America receive the support they need to address the growing housing affordability crisis. The CBC is demanding that both chambers return to conference, reconcile the House and Senate versions, and produce the strongest possible housing legislation for communities across the nation.”

Congressional Black Caucus Statement on Trump’s Executive Order on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s executive order, “Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors”:

“Once again, the Trump Administration is failing on its promise to lower costs and increase the standard of living for families across the nation. Rather than focusing his attention on the affordability crisis, President Trump remains committed to attacking critical tools of economic mobility for hardworking, everyday Americans. President Trump’s most recent EO, “Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors,” seeks to further eliminate practices of equity and inclusion for government contractors. The order specifically directs federal agencies to add standardized contract language that prohibits government contractors from engaging in diversity, equity, and inclusion programming within 30 days of its enactment.

“Diversity, equity, and inclusion practices are not only mutually beneficial for a business's financial bottom line and its employees, but it is also imperative that the diversity of our federal government and its contractors accurately represent the diversity of the people it serves. It benefits absolutely no one to eradicate programming that improves the efficiency and representation of our democracy.

“This administration seems to have accomplished almost nothing over the last two years besides bringing the functions of our government to its most inefficient peak and attacking programs that move our country forward.

“The Congressional Black Caucus denounces this administration's blatantly racist and illogical attempts to whitewash our federal government at the expense of the American people. It is unacceptable that President Trump continues to eliminate opportunities for economic success for hardworking families and completely disregards calls for a more affordable standard of living. This is yet another example of this administration working to decimate our economy and undermine the American dream for our most vulnerable communities.”

Congressional Black Caucus Statement on Pam Bondi

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement:

“Attorney General Pam Bondi’s firing is long overdue. During her disgraceful tenure, she single-handedly corrupted the independence of the Department of Justice, turning it into an arm of President Trump’s personal defense team—focused on undermining the rule of law and seeking retribution against those on his perceived enemies list, including journalists, members of Congress, private citizens, and anyone who worked to hold him and his corrupt administration accountable.

“For months, Pam Bondi oversaw the illegal cover-up of the Jeffrey Epstein files to protect President Trump, carried out large-scale firings of career DOJ employees, and repeatedly lied to Congress and the American people. She has cast a dark shadow over the DOJ, tarnishing the credibility of our nation’s highest law enforcement agency.

“This moment follows decisive action from within our Caucus, including Rep. Summer Lee’s introduction of articles of impeachment to hold Attorney General Bondi accountable.

“Pam Bondi’s ouster will not shield her from being held accountable for her corrupt actions at the DOJ. We will continue to pursue true accountability for her abuses of power until the Trump administration’s culture of corruption comes to an end.”

Congressional Black Caucus Statement on Trump’s Unlawful Voter Suppression Executive Order

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement:

“Right now, Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are deploying every tactic imaginable to suppress the power of the people in a desperate effort to maintain control in Washington. The executive order signed by President Trump is an unlawful and unconstitutional attempt to dictate who in this country is allowed to vote.

“This sweeping order would allow the Trump Administration to unilaterally determine voter eligibility, intimidate state election officials through politically motivated investigations, and jeopardize the privacy of millions of law-abiding Americans. It would also disenfranchise Black and other minority voters, women, young people, individuals with disabilities, and older Americans.

“The order directs federal agencies to compile lists of eligible voters in each state and instructs the U.S. Postal Service to distribute mail ballots only to so-called ‘verified’ voters, which raises serious concerns about access, fairness, and federal overreach.

“Donald Trump and Republicans know their policies have failed the American people. That is why they are working to weaken the Voting Rights Act and advance voter suppression legislation like the SAVE Act in a continued effort to cling to power.

“There is no scenario in which this unlawful, anti-democratic, and authoritarian executive order will not go unchallenged to the fullest extent of the law.”

DWC and CBC Leaders Slam Secretary Hegseth’s Attack on Women and Black Military Officers

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Today, March 27, 2026, Democratic Women’s Caucus (DWC) Chair Teresa Leger Fernández (NM-03), DWC Vice Chairs Emilia Sykes (OH-13) and Hillary Scholten (MI-03), DWC Servicewomen, Women Veterans, and Military Families Task Force Chair Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke (NY–09) released the following statement on United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s outrageous and unprecedented move to strike two women and two Black officers from a list recommending their promotion to one-star generals. This action is just the latest of numerous attacks on women by Secretary Hegseth, President Trump, and the Department of Defense.

“Secretary Hegseth’s unprecedented removal of two women and two Black officers—who each have literal decades of exemplary service—from the one-star promotion list is outrageous and wrong. The claim that Hegseth’s Chief of Staff told the Army Secretary ‘Trump would not want to stand next to a Black female officer at military events’ is racist, sexist, and extremely concerning. Our country needs qualified leadership to keep us safe at home and abroad. We stand with these distinguished officers being targeted by Trump.

Time and time again, Trump and his administration have shown us exactly who they are—attacking and undermining Black people and women in the military, public servants, and women in power.

It is clear they are trying to erase Black and women’s leadership and history. At the Department of Defense specifically, Secetary Hegseth has launched countless attacks against our servicewomen and women veterans since day one. Hegseth has wrongly claimed that women don’t meet the standards to serve in combat roles, ripped away resources to help integrate women servicemembers, and disrespected women in uniform at every turn. Today’s news isn’t an anomaly, it is a part of a coordinated and sustained strategy to undermine and erase women and people of color. Servicewomen have sacrificed their safety, security, and even their lives, for our country. We are outraged and deeply alarmed by Secretary Hegseth and this Administration’s continuous attempts to attack their merits.

We've long known that Pete Hegseth is an unfit and unqualified Secretary of Defense appointed by Trump. So it is absurd, ironic, and beyond inappropriate that he of all people would deny these promotions to officers with records of exemplary service. America's servicemembers deserve so much better.”

Background:

United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is blocking two women and two Black Army officers from becoming one-star generals in a highly unusual move. The New York Times reported that Hegseth had spent months asking senior military leaders to remove these four officers from the promotion list, but Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll, “citing the officers’ decades-long records of exemplary service, had repeatedly refused.” The remainder of the promotion list, which has about three dozen officers, is made up of mostly white men.

Since he was nominated to be Secretary, the DWC has led the charge in holding Pete Hegseth accountable for his countless attacks on women, failures, and incompetence. DWC members have demanded he reinstate programs he cut that support women in combat, condemned his view that women shouldn’t work, vote, or serve in combat, and called out his alarming lack of experience. Hegseth has also proposed eliminating the Defense Department’s Women, Peace, and Security Program and removed several women in top military leadership positions throughout his disastrous tenure.

DWC Members do critical work to support our servicewomen and veterans. DWCmembers and veterans Rep. Houlahan and Rep. Goodlander are leading an effort to codify the role of women in the military. Rep. Browley leads the work to protect women veterans’ access to reproductive care. Every single day, DWC members fight for the health care, sexual assault reporting resources, and other support for our servicewomen and veterans.

Outside of the Department of Defense, the Trump administration has also attacked women, leaders, and communities of color by firing qualified government leaders, stripping away workplace protections and services, and attacking civil rights at every turn.

CBC Issues Historic Endorsement of UN Resolution Declaring the Trafficking and Racialized Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime Against Humanity

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Ahead of the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Transatlantic Trafficking of Africans, the Congressional Black Caucus today announced its full and emphatic endorsement of a UN General Assembly resolution filed by the Republic of Ghana declaring the trafficking and racialized, inter-generational chattel enslavement of Africans as among the gravest crimes against humanity.

The Caucus hailed the efforts of the African Union, which dedicated its 2025 Theme of the Year to “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations,” and launched, in its last Summit that convened earlier in February, a corresponding Decade from 2026 to 2035.

Throughout history, progress has demanded more than good intentions—it has required moral courage and bold action. This resolution rises to that standard. It confronts entrenched global challenges with clarity of purpose and a visionary approach to structural change. By aligning principle with collective action, it reflects a profound commitment to justice, accountability, and opportunity for Africans and people of African descent worldwide.

At defining moments, societies either retreat into complacency or rise to meet the demands of justice. This resolution represents the latter. It signals our readiness to act with conviction, foresight, and unity across borders and generations. Its adoption would lay the foundation for generational progress, global solidarity, and renewed public trust in the international community’s commitment to addressing institutional racism.

History remembers those who choose courage over convenience. The Congressional Black Caucus calls upon UN Member States to seize this historic moment, adopt the resolution, and affirm their commitment to building a more just, equitable, and unified world, free from the enduring legacies of transatlantic enslavement, colonialism, and apartheid, which were classified by the African Union, in its latest Summit in Addis Ababa, as crimes against humanity.

Readout of Congressional Black Caucus Roundtable on the State of Black Farmers and Agriculture

Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

In recognition of Black History Month, the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) convened a virtual roundtable on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, titled “The State of Black Farmers and Agriculture.” Led by Representatives Sanford Bishop and Shontel Brown, the discussion brought together CBC Members and external partners, including policy experts, advocates, and stakeholders across the agricultural community.

The roundtable provided an opportunity to honor the historic legacy and contributions of Black farmers while examining the significant challenges facing Black-owned agricultural operations today. Participants discussed the long history of discrimination in federal agricultural programs and the structural barriers that continue to limit equitable access to resources, land ownership, and economic opportunity.

During the discussion, experts and stakeholders highlighted several pressing concerns, including recent administrative actions affecting programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the elimination of “socially disadvantaged” designations, trade and tariff pressures, rural infrastructure gaps, heirs’ property barriers, and funding cuts impacting technical assistance organizations that support Black farmers and producers. Participants also raised concerns that many Black farmers have not benefited from the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, citing delays in payments and structural barriers that have limited equitable access to relief funding.

The conversation also underscored the broader economic impact of these policy decisions on the Black farmer economy and the urgent need to protect and restore programs that support historically underserved producers. CBC Members emphasized the importance of strong congressional oversight, advancing legislative reforms in the upcoming Farm Bill, and developing strategies to ensure Black farmers have equitable access to federal agricultural programs and resources.

The roundtable reflects the CBC’s continued commitment to uplifting Black farmers and safeguarding the future of Black agriculture. Members and participants also committed to strengthening coordination between the Caucus and Black agricultural advocacy organizations as part of ongoing efforts to support Black farmers and rural communities across the country.

Members in Attendance:

U.S. Representative Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02)
U.S. Representative Shontel Brown (D-OH-11)

Participants:

John Boyd Jr., Founder & President, National Black Farmers Association
Shirley Sherrod, Co-Founder, New Communities Inc.; Southwest Georgia farmer
Christi Bland, Representative, National Black Growers Council

Congressional Black Caucus Demands Reversal of Trump Policies Impacting Black Immigrant Communities Nationwide

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 05:00:00 GMT

The Congressional Black Caucus today sent a letter to President Donald Trump demanding that the Administration cease all operations created to disenfranchise and displace Black immigrant communities across the United States, amid scrutiny from lawmakers and community advocates that the Administration has continually singled out Black immigrant communities in its harmful agenda.

In the letter to President Trump, the CBC calls for the reinstatement of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for impacted Black-majority nations and the immediate halt of Operation “Post-Admission Refugee Reverification and Integrity Strengthening” (PARRIS), a federal initiative that has been blocked twice by a federal judge in Minnesota.

“We write to this Administration to condemn the recent actions perpetrated against Black immigrants across the United States,” the Members stated. “President Trump is carrying out one of the most violent campaigns we have seen against any vulnerable community in recent history, and it must come to a swift and immediate end. The actions of this Administration toward Black immigrants are not only unconscionable, but they represent a long and deep-rooted anti-Black history that we will not allow our communities to re-live.”

The CBC, which has long prioritized improving relations across the diaspora, emphasized that, rather than advancing meaningful immigration reform, the Administration’s policies and rhetoric have destabilized immigrant communities nationwide.

“President Trump has failed in almost every promise he has made to the American people, and his efforts to rectify the immigration system are no different,” the letter continued. “Rather than resolving legitimate issues and pathways to citizenship, this Administration launched an assault on all immigrant communities in the United States, regardless of status. Black immigrants have carried the consequences of these irresponsible, disorganized, racially charged, and extremely volatile efforts.”

Additionally, the CBC raised concerns about enforcement practices following a recent incident in Buffalo, New York, in which a refugee, Nurul Amin Shah Alam, was released during severe weather conditions and later found deceased.

“The callous actions of the agents led to the eventual death of Mr. Shah Alam, who was found four miles from the location where he was dropped during severe weather conditions,” the Members wrote. “In addition to the fact that Mr. Shah Alam was nearly legally blind, he spoke little to no English, severely impacting his ability to navigate his release from custody without assistance.”

The CBC requested a formal response from the Administration and called for meaningful collaboration to rebuild communities impacted by these policies.

Read the full letter here.

CBC Letter Urging Trump White House to Reverse Harmful Policies Targeting Black Immigrant Communities

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 05:00:00 GMT

A letter from the Congressional Black Caucus urging the Trump White House to reverse harmful policies targeting Black immigrant communities.

Congressional Black Caucus Statement on Kristi Noem

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement:

“Secretary Kristi Noem’s firing should have come sooner. The CBC has made clear for weeks that Secretary Noem needed to be removed or impeached. Under her leadership, the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been out of control and operating with impunity. We have seen our communities terrorized and brutalized, innocent Americans killed in cold blood by masked ICE agents who believe they are above the law, and blatant corruption in plain sight.

“Secretary Noem is far from the only person responsible for the depraved immigration policies and practices of the Trump Administration. A personnel change with no commitment to drastic and meaningful change is just optics. No matter who leads the agency, the Trump Administration must reverse their policies and rhetoric from the top. At a minimum, ICE, CBP, and all DHS agencies and officers must conduct themselves with the same expectations and guardrails that exist for every other law enforcement agency in the country.

“We are going to continue pushing for true accountability for Kristi Noem and DHS until they are brought to justice for their abuses of power and until this culture of impunity within the Trump Administration is brought to an end. Our communities deserve safety, transparency, and a federal government that respects the rule of law—not one that operates above it.”