Black Americans
There are approximately 1.1 million people living with
FACT SHEET: Opportunity for all: President Obama Launches My Brother’s Keeper Initiative to Build Ladders of Opportunity For Boys and Young Men of Color
President Obama is taking action to launch My Brother’s Keeper – a new initiative to help every boy and young man of color who is willing to do the hard work to get ahead. For decades, opportunity has lagged behind for boys and young men of color. But across the country, communities are adopting approaches to help put these boys and young men on the path to success. The President wants to build on that work. We can learn from communities that are partnering with local businesses and foundations to connect these boys and young men to mentoring, support networks, and skills they need to find a good job or go to college and work their way up into the middle class. And the Administration will do its part by helping to identify and promote programs that work.
That starts by using proven tools that expand opportunity at key moments in the lives of these young people. The President believes this includes ensuring access to basic health, nutrition, and to high-quality early education to get these kids reading and ready for school at the youngest age. But that’s not enough. We need to partner with communities and police to reduce violence and make our classrooms and streets safer. And we need to help these young men stay in school and find a good job– so they have the opportunity to reach their full potential, contribute to their communities and build decent lives for themselves and their families.
New Presidential Task Force to Expand Opportunity. President Obama will sign a Presidential Memorandum establishing the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force, an interagency effort, chaired by Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary Broderick Johnson, that will help us determine what public and private efforts are working and how to expand upon them, how the Federal Government’s own policies and programs can better support these efforts, and how to better involve State and local officials, the private sector, and the philanthropic community in these efforts.
The Task Force will work across executive departments and agencies to:
Assess the impact of Federal policies, regulations, and programs of general applicability on boys and young men of color, so as to develop proposals that will enhance positive outcomes and eliminate or reduce negative ones.
Recommend, where appropriate, incentives for the broad adoption by national, State, and local public and private decision makers of effective and innovative strategies and practices for providing opportunities to and improving outcomes for boys and young men of color.
Create an Administration-wide “What Works” online portal to disseminate successful programs and practices that improve outcomes for boys and young men of color.
Develop a comprehensive public website, to be maintained by the Department of Education, that will assess, on an ongoing basis, critical indicators of life outcomes for boys and young men of color in absolute and relative terms.
Work with external stakeholders to highlight the opportunities, challenges, and efforts affecting boys and young men of color.
Recommend to the President means of ensuring sustained efforts within the Federal Government and continued partnership with the private sector and philanthropic community as set forth in the Presidential Memorandum.
Investments from Leading Foundations and Businesses to Advance the Achievement of Boys and Young Men of Color.
Leading foundations and businesses have long worked with others in philanthropy to create opportunities for young men and boys of color and today are committing significant resources to research critical intervention points in the lives of boys and young men of color; change the often-damaging narrative about them; and catalyze coordinated investments to seed, replicate, and scale up effective community solutions.
The foundations supporting today’s call to action have already made extensive investments, including $150 million in current spending that they have already approved or awarded. Building on that, today these foundations are announcing that over the next five years they seek to invest at least $200 million, alongside additional investments from their peers in philanthropy and the business community, to find and rapidly spread solutions that have the highest potential for impact in key areas, including: early child development and school readiness, parenting and parent engagement, 3rd grade literacy, educational opportunity and school discipline reform, interactions with the criminal justice system ladders to jobs and economic opportunity and healthy families and communities.
The foundations will work over the next 90 days to design a strategy and infrastructure for coordination of these investments, which can be aligned with additional commitments from a diverse array of actors from other sectors.
These foundations, who are joining President Obama at today’s announcement, include
The Annie E. Casey Foundation,
The Atlantic Philanthropies,
Bloomberg Philanthropies,
The California Endowment,
The Ford Foundation,
The John S. and
James L. Knight Foundation,
The Open Society Foundations,
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and
The Kapor Center for Social Impact.
Many of the foundations are members of the Executives’ Alliance to Expand Opportunities for Boys and Men of Color – a coalition of philanthropic institutions committed to leveraging philanthropy’s role in improving life outcomes for boys and men of color.
In addition to the leadership from the philanthropic community, the My Brother’s Keeper initiative will leverage participation from the business community and elected officials to support this cross-sector effort. As part of today’s announcement, President Obama will meet with a number of business leaders – including Joe Echevarria of Deloitte, Magic Johnson of Magic Johnson Enterprises, Glenn Hutchins of Silver Lake Partners, Adam Silver of the National Basketball Association and Thomas Tull of Legendary Entertainment – to discuss ways in which they and their companies can work with the Initiative to improve the life outcomes of boys and young men of color.
The President will also be joined today by public sector leaders including General Colin Powell, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Honorable Michael Bloomberg.
Additionally, several other prominent members of the business community—including Rosalind Brewer of Sam’s Club, Ken Chenault of American Express, and Don Thompson of McDonald’s—have already expressed their support for this effort, and the White House expects additional commitments in the coming days and months.
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Data shows that boys and young men of color, regardless of socio-economic background, are disproportionately at risk throughout the journey from their youngest years to college and career. For instance, large disparities remain in reading proficiency, with 86 percent of black boys and 82 percent of Hispanic boys reading below proficiency levels by the fourth grade – compared to 58 percent of white boys reading below proficiency levels. Additionally, the disproportionate number of black and Hispanic young men who are unemployed or involved in the criminal justice system alone is a perilous drag on state budgets, and undermines family and community stability. These young men are more than six times as likely to be victims of murder than their white peers and account for almost half of the country’s murder victims each year.
The effort launched today is focused on unlocking the full potential of boys and young men of color – something that will not only benefit them, but all Americans. The Task Force and new private sector partnership will take a collaborative and multidisciplinary approach to building ladders of opportunity. Both the Task Force and the partnership will take action immediately while planning for long-term success.
HIV Among African Americans
Blacks/African Americansa account for a higher proportion of new HIV diagnoses, those living with HIV, and those who have ever received an AIDS diagnosis, compared to other races/ethnicities. In 2016, African Americans accounted for 44% of HIV diagnoses, though they comprise 12% of the U.S. population.b
The Numbers
HIV and AIDS Diagnosesc
In 2016:
- 17,528 African Americans received an HIV diagnosis in the United States (12,890 men and 4,560 women).
- More than half (58%, 10,223) of African Americans who received an HIV diagnosis were gay or bisexual men.d
- Among African American gay and bisexual men who received an HIV diagnosis, 39% (3,993) were young men aged 25 to 34.
- Forty-seven percent (8,501) of those who received an AIDS diagnosis in the United States were African American.
From 2011 to 2015:
- HIV diagnoses decreased 8% among African Americans overall.
- HIV diagnoses decreased 16% among African American heterosexual men.
- The number of HIV diagnoses among African American women fell 20%, though it is still high compared to women of other races/ethnicities. In 2016, 4,560 African American women received an HIV diagnosis, compared with 1,450 white women and 1,168 Hispanic/Latina women.e
- HIV diagnoses decreased 39% among African Americans who inject drugs.f
- HIV diagnoses among African American gay and bisexual men remained stable.
- HIV diagnoses among young African American gay and bisexual men aged 13 to 24 remained stable.
- HIV diagnoses among African American gay and bisexual men aged 25 to 34 increased 30%.
Living With HIV and Deaths
- At the end of 2014, an estimated 471,500 African Americans were living with HIV (43% of everyone living with HIV in the United States), and 16% were unaware of their infection.
- Among all African Americans living with HIV in 2014, 84% had received a diagnosis, 59% received HIV medical care in 2014, 46% were retained in HIV care, and 43% had a suppressed viral load. g
- In 2015, 3,379 African Americans died from HIV disease, accounting for 52% of total deaths attributed to the disease that year.
HIV Diagnoses in the United States for the Most-Affected Subpopulations, 2016
Source: CDC. Diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States and dependent areas, 2016. HIV Surveillance Report 2017;28.
Subpopulations representing 2% or less of HIV diagnoses are not reflected in this chart.
Prevention Challenges
In all communities, lack of awareness of HIV status contributes to HIV risk. People who do not know they have HIV cannot take advantage of HIV care and treatment and may unknowingly pass HIV to others.
A number of challenges contribute to the higher rates of HIV infection among African Americans. The greater number of people living with HIV (prevalence) in African American communities and the tendency for African Americans to have sex with partners of the same race/ethnicity mean that African Americans face a greater risk of HIV infection. Some African American communities also experience higher rates of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) than other racial/ethnic communities in the United States. Having another STD can significantly increase a person’s chance of getting or transmitting HIV.
Stigma, fear, discrimination, and homophobia may place many African Americans at higher risk for HIV. Also, the poverty rate is higher among African Americans than other racial/ethnic groups. The socioeconomic issues associated with poverty—including limited access to high-quality health care, housing, and HIV prevention education—directly and indirectly increase the risk for HIV infection and affect the health of people living with and at risk for HIV. These factors may explain why African Americans have worse outcomes on the HIV continuum of care, including lower rates of linkage to care and viral suppression.
What CDC Is Doing
CDC and its partners are pursuing a high-impact prevention approach and maximizing the effectiveness of current HIV prevention methods. Some of CDC’s activities include:
- Support for health departments and community-based organizations to deliver effective prevention interventions for African Americans and other populations.
- A new funding opportunity that directs resources to the populations and geographic areas of greatest need, while supporting core HIV surveillance and prevention efforts across the United States.
- Support for health departments to develop comprehensive models of prevention, care, and social services for gay and bisexual men of color living with or at risk for HIV, as well as training and technical assistance to implement and sustain those models.
- A funding opportunity that began in 2017 to implement comprehensive HIV prevention programs for young gay and bisexual men of color.
- Three funding opportunities that began in 2015 to help health departments reduce HIV infections and improve HIV medical care among gay and bisexual men of color. These funding opportunities will increase gay and bisexual men’s access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), increase health departments’ surveillance capacity, and support effective models of prevention and care for gay and bisexual men of color.
- The Act Against AIDS campaigns, including
- Let’s Stop HIV Together, which raises HIV awareness and fights stigma among all Americans and provides many stories about people living with HIV;
- Doing It, a national HIV testing and prevention campaign that encourages all adults to know their HIV status and protect themselves and their community by making HIV testing a part of their regular health routine;
- Start Talking. Stop HIV. which helps gay and bisexual men communicate about safer sex, testing, and other HIV prevention issues.
- HIV Treatment Works, which shows how people living with HIV have overcome barriers to stay in care and provides resources on how to live well with HIV; and
- Partnering and Communicating Together (PACT) to Act Against AIDS, a 5-year partnership with organizations such as the National Black Justice Coalition, the National Urban League, and the Black Men’s Xchange to raise awareness about testing, prevention, and retention in care among populations disproportionately affected by HIV, including African Americans.
a Referred to as African Americans in this fact sheet.
b Does not include African Americans who are Hispanic/Latino.
cHIV and AIDS diagnoses refers to the number of people diagnosed with HIV infection or AIDS during a given time period, not when the people were infected.
dThe term male-to-male sexual contact is used in CDC surveillance systems. It indicates a behavior that transmits HIV infection, not how individuals self-identify in terms of their sexuality. This fact sheet uses the term gay and bisexual men.
e Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
f Includes diagnoses attributed to injection drug use as well as those attributed to injection drug use and male-to-male sexual contact.
g People are considered retained in care if they get two viral load or CD4 tests at least 3 months apart in a year. (CD4 cells are the cells in the body’s immune system that are destroyed by HIV.) Viral suppression is based on the most recent viral load test.
LET'S DOUBLE DOWN ON BLACK AND LATIN AMERICANS
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at an event to highlight "My Brother's Keeper," an initiative to expand opportunity for young men and boys of color, in the East Room of the White House, Feb. 27, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)This afternoon, in the East Room of the White House, President Obama delivered remarks at the launch event for My Brother's Keeper -- his new initiative aimed at helping young men and boys of color facing tough odds reach their full potential.
The initiative will bring together private philanthropies, businesses, governors, mayors, faith leaders, and nonprofit organizations that are committed to helping them succeed.
GOMOJO is a collection of all the ABOVE.
As the President said in today's remarks, ensuring that young men of color can reach their full potential is the only way "America can reach its full potential."
President Obama announced that philanthropies and corporate leaders have pledged to invest at least $200 million over the next five years -- on top of $150 million that they have already invested -- to figure out which programs are the most successful in helping young men of color and replicate them in communities across the country.
He also signed a presidential memorandum directing the federal government to determine the best methods to improve the odds for young men of color
The President made clear, however, that government can't fix the problem by itself. Helping our young men of color has to be a multifaceted, sustained effort in all areas of our society:
David HudsonFebruary 27, 2014 07:32 PM EDTMICHELE REEDMarch 14, 2014 09:14 PM PT[I]n this effort, government cannot play the only -- or even the primary -- role.
We can help give every child access to quality preschool and help them start learning from an early age, but we can’t replace the power of a parent who’s reading to that child.
Especially from birth until they can read well on their own. I saw pajamas at the Tech Celebrate with scan codes on them created for the times reading is not an option for working parents or away on business.
The key for parents to remember is that kids are people and most of them understand much more than grown ups think or give them credit for, I remember EVERYTHING since kindergarten and so do our kids.
We can reform our criminal justice system to ensure that it's not infected with bias, but nothing keeps a young man out of trouble like a father who takes an active role in his son’s life.
True, but so can sports, arts, and exploring other uncovered passions. The reality of it all is that is not going to change the fact that many of our sons between the ages of 13-24 being grossly infected. GOMOJO focuses on helping people do things they love besides meaningless sex. Most people need to stay busy, do things they are passionate about and build many meaningful relationships
fected by being rejected from parents infected with HIV/AIDS. These
We have members of the VEGASTECH and Downtown Las Vegas In other words, broadening the horizons for our young men and giving them the tools they need to succeed will require a sustained effort from all of us. Parents will have to parent -- and turn off the television, and help with homework.
Teachers will need to do their part to make sure our kids don’t fall behind and that we're setting high expectations for those children and not giving up on them.
Parents who at least address issues regarding their kids behaviors and reasons for teachers to give up on them. Teachers need to keep records updated on parentlink of updating parent link and if parents can access facebook and games then they can check the grades and check the kid.
Business leaders will need to create more mentorships and apprenticeships to show more young people what careers are out there.
GOMOJO is created for all people to be young people at any age so mentors have an opportunity to do learn something new at any age. For the past 7 years I have been mentored and counseled by Bob Cushman at www.SCORELV.ORG and my secret weapon "Charlie" both of them are AMAZING and I would love to see them come out and play a new game.
As an entrepreneur on a social mission to end AIDS and take down the middle finger young black Americans are facing and under attack. So I spent the past two years in the street asking questions quietly one by one to get an understanding of what people are doing with their time and always asking if you could be anything when you grow up what would it be, and discovered and built upon the mentorships and apprenticeships already set up and in place to flip the script on the choices people have to do with way things are done. As a mother of 3 yet more like 3000 the future, I am excited about the future and culture and around people who know, understand and embrace "it takes a tribe to raise a village opportunity to introduce the endless opportunities for the people of Las Vegas, NV.
Tech leaders will need to open young eyes to fields like computer science and engineering.
Opening peoples eyes to what is right here for us all to take advantage of our "disadvantages" which is defined as anything other than White American Male. We need to use our tools and resources readily available for us all to succeed in life by taking equal opportunity to a greater than equal opportunity for Black and Latin Americans.
As a Tech business leader and non-profit supporter I took the time to volunteer for multiple organizations in and around Las Vegas and for all of the parties responsible for the funding they received from either the United State federal government and the Downtown Project, Amazon, RGG, The City of Las Vegas and other investors and government money we have a moral responsibility to maximize each dollar spent.
Faith leaders will need to help our young men develop the values and ethical framework that is the foundation for a good and productive life.
Over the past couple years I ,July 2011 A call to action from the The President announcing the reports from the CDC -Centers for Disease Control that the rate of infections is increasing at pandemic rates of infection in American. He asked all American leaders to take a look into the CDC findings and to pay particularly close attention to the hardest hit demographics being grossly infected at disaprotioned rates in particular
YOUNG BLACK AMERICANS
Military
Transgender Women
Sex Workers
He also asked us to look into the faith based organizations.
So we all have a job to do. And we can do it together -- black and white, urban and rural, Democrat and Republican.
